Corn:
slavery and freedom
Corn is the most cultivated cereal worldwide, with over 1.2 billion tons harvested in 2021 alone. Domesticated more than 10,000 years ago by various American and Mesoamerican peoples, this plant was revered and known by names such as The Seed of Seeds or Mother of All Things. Corn was also central to a symbiotic agricultural system known by Native Americans as The Three Sisters, in which corn, beans, and squash supported each other’s growth in harmony and abundance, thriving more efficiently together than they would separately.
Although this system was more sustainable, colonizers—driven solely by profit—replaced it with vast monocultures. They viewed the indigenous method as primitive and disorganized, favoring rows upon rows of single crops that, while easier to harvest, required enormous amounts of water and fertilizers, ultimately depleting the soil. To further maximize profits, they also relied on slave labor, capturing and dehumanizing millions of Africans who were forcibly shipped to the Americas. Upon arrival, they were shaved to erase all traces of their culture and identity.
