# Consequences for female plantation owners having affairs with slaves? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 26, 2007, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170 "2007-10-26T21:42:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2007, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/21 "2007-10-29T13:20:51Z")
[QUOTE=Darryl Lict] Isn’t there a documentary called [Mandingo](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073349/) about this very issue? 🙂 [/QUOTE] Documentary? You just made me spit out my coffee! 😃 One of the most fucked up movies ever made. ---
**Author:** ![zahara2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/53a042/32.png) [@zahara2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zahara2)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2007, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/22 "2007-10-29T18:03:24Z")
[QUOTE=Mr. Slant] I just pulled the book out and reviewed the relevant section. Evidence consulted included WPA surveys of former slaves, census data on ‘mulattoes’ and genetics research. I’d need to research Fogel & Engerman’s cites in order to arrive at my own conclusions on this, which is something I don’t have time to do. I have some thoughts on why American blacks look the way they do, if the 1-2% figure is correct, but sharing those could steer this thread straight into The Pit. [/QUOTE] I would like to hear your thoughts on this. Please. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2007, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/23 "2007-10-29T18:22:58Z")
Start another thread, I’ll respond this evening. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2007, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/24 "2007-10-29T18:37:13Z")
[QUOTE=Mr. Slant] As such, the number of slaveholders engaging in this behavior was startlingly low: I believe I saw 2%, although I may have seen 0.2%. [/QUOTE] The numbers I’ve seen suggest that in rural plantations about 1-2% of the slaves were sired by white daddies. Mind you, these white daddies could be overseers or they could the actual slaveholders. According to census figures, about 25% of urban slaves either had a white parent or white grandparent. Don’t know how reliable this [cite](http://www.etymonline.com/cw/mulatto.htm) is but the numbers they use are consistent with what I’m familiar with. But all this data tells us is how many slaves were produced by white men. It doesn’t tell us the frequency of “marital relations” between slaveowners and their slaves. I wouldn’t be surprised if many slaves aborted their babies or killed them, either at their own direction or the slaveowner’s (Because, afterall, what would the neighbors think?) ---
**Author:** ![xxfireangel13xx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/cab0a1/32.png) [@xxfireangel13xx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xxfireangel13xx)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/25 "2007-10-31T18:13:11Z")
[QUOTE=spoke-] My educated guess would be that sexual relationships between white females and slaves produced a lot of false rape accusations. The scenario: White lady is having consensual sex with Slave A. She misses her period, and panics, wondering how she will explain her situation. She addresses her problem by accusing Slave B of rape. [/QUOTE] That’s what I would guess happend too. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/26 "2007-10-31T18:20:02Z")
[QUOTE=even sven] I think we have a winner. This was SOP for white women getting caught in illicit relations with black men for ages- hell, happens plenty today. I don’t think it’d be different in the days of slavery. [/QUOTE] It happens today, really? Don’t white women have, at least, the option of abortion today? ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2007, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170/27 "2007-10-31T19:26:48Z")
[QUOTE=spoke-] My educated guess would be that sexual relationships between white females and slaves produced a lot of false rape accusations. The scenario: White lady is having consensual sex with Slave A. She misses her period, and panics, wondering how she will explain her situation. She addresses her problem by accusing Slave B of rape. [/QUOTE] I’d say that’s a good educated guess, as it wasn’t unheard of post-slavery, pre-civil rights. Or she admitted to the affair, but her family quickly silenced her and got to some old fashioned abortioning if she was knocked up. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/consequences-for-female-plantation-owners-having-affairs-with-slaves/424170.md?page=1)