This document also contains newspaper articles from Brazil where people advertised the fact that they were looking to sell or rent out a female slave to serve as a wet nurse. This once again shows how the African slaves were viewed as subhuman in Brazilian society. A French doctor even advises women on how to select a slave as a wet nurse. The doctor states that while everyone would much rather have a white woman as a wet nurse, the African women are more accustomed to the tropical climate and, therefore, are better prospects as a wet nurse. However, to prevent the nursing child from contracting a disease, the slave woman was thoroughly inspected and only when found to be free of defect, purchased as a wet nurse.
Besides the hardships that slaves had to endure in transport and the selling process, they also were often mistreated by their owners. In the case of the 12 year old slave girl being sexually abused by her master. Although there was sufficient evidence that the rape had occurred, the court still ruled in favor of the master. Giving him the right to sexually abuse her if he wanted to. To me, it is completely disgusting to see that a court of law would legally allow a person to rape another and receive no punishment for it.
Thankfully slavery has been abolished in Brazil, but the effects of slavery still linger in the multi-racial society. Blacks are often barred from moving up in society because of their skin color. Black women especially are stuck in the domestic labor force of society, and having difficulties finding any other jobs. While the government often proclaims that Brazil is a racial democracy, this is not the case. This is a direct result of the slave trade that existed in the colonial period.