Europeans had long viewed people of color and particularly black Africans as inferior.  Slavery did not evolve slowly from a system of relative racial equality. Blacks and whites were viewed and treated differently from the beginning and the institution of slavery that emerged was a natural reflection of the deep-seated racism that the white settlers brought with them from Europe.

The black labor force provided white Southerners with economic benefits.  During the early years of settlement, blacks and white often worked together.  Black workers were relatively few in number, and differences in status were rather vague. During the late 1600s, whites discovered that African workers were better suited than Europeans to do arduous work (i.e. rice cultivation) which was beginning to dominate the Southern economy.  Importation of black workers increased rapidly and, by the early 1700s, whites had become uneasy about the presence of a black majority in certain colonies especially due to concerns over the possibility of slave revolts.
 

The labor system in the South was at first rather flexible and later grew increasingly rigid. Early colonists did not intend to create a permanent system of human bondage. However, by the late 1600s, the flourishing tobacco economy had created a growing need for inexpensive laborers. The creation of a rigid slave system in the 1700s, was less a result of historic racism than a response to economic and social needs. Racism emerged as a result of slavery; it was not the cause of it.