the demand for labor in agriculture, mining, and other industries was high and the European population was not sufficient to meet this demand. The enslavement of Africans was seen as a profitable solution to this labor shortage, as they were perceived as a cheap and expendable source of labor. Additionally, Europeans believed in the racial superiority of the white race and justified the exploitation of Africans on the basis of their supposed inferiority. Slavery became institutionalized in the American colonies and lasted for over two centuries, until it was abolished in 1865 with the passage of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.
