What is the hot box slavery?

Hot box slavery, also known as sweatbox slavery, was a form of punishment used by slave owners in the United States during the 18th and 19th centuries. It involved confining a slave in a small, airless, and hot space, such as a metal or wooden box, in order to inflict extreme suffering and pain.

The hot box was typically used as a punishment for slaves who had committed minor offenses, such as disobeying orders or attempting to escape. The slave would be stripped of their clothes and forced into the hot box, usually for several hours or even days. The confined space would quickly become unbearably hot and humid, causing the slave to suffer from heat exhaustion, dehydration, thirst, and in some cases, death.

Hot box slavery was a cruel and inhumane practice, designed to exert control and domination over enslaved people and reinforce the power of slave owners. It was one of many forms of physical abuse and torture used by slave owners, who treated enslaved people as mere property rather than human beings with inherent dignity and worth.

Although hot box slavery is no longer practiced today, its legacy lives on in the ongoing struggle for racial justice and equality. The dehumanizing treatment and exploitation of enslaved people in the past continues to shape systemic inequalities and disparities in society today.