Don Lardo, I have to say that I disagree with your point that Slaves under spanish rule were considered nothing but disposable labor. Slavery had a much longer history in Spain besides simply colonization. Throughout the 1260's Alfonso X the Wise, decreed in his Siete Partidas that masters of slaves could not interfere with who their slaves married, and in fact must make an effort to ensure that married slaves were allowed to work together. The children of those marriages would take whatever status the mother had, including freedom if she was free. Under Spanish law, slaves were allowed to inherit property, and could even purchase freedom. If they were maltreated they did have a right to be heard by a judge. Now Alfonso's decrees were all based on Roman laws of slavery, and were even considered more liberal.
These liberal laws were not put to an end until 1522 after Charles V was pressured to issue laws that would restrict freedom of movement, bearing arms, and marriage. This was in response to a slave rebellion in 1521. But even the new laws were considered an immoral decision by many within the royal court and men like Bartolemas da Casas.
But even after the new laws Spanish liberal slave laws still played a role in Latin America. Slaves continued to be able to purchase freedom. During the 1800’s and 1700’s Slaves set up totally legal Cabildo’s which served as community funds for the purchase and housing of fellow Africans, these were organized on internal African ethnic rules, with Wolofs helping Wolofs and Kongolese helping Kongolese for instance. Slaves also had legal recourse and I have read the court records of a young African slave’s official complaints over a owner who raped and beat her.
As to the question of were the Slaves settlers or not. I would say they certainly were. They did not simply hack sugar cane and die like many people think. Slaves brought over from Africa were not mindless zombies, and brought over many important skills. Hydraulic mills and blacksmith shops were also part of the activities of the Slaves. Spaniards did oversee much of the work, but day to day maintenance and the refining of sugar itself were due to the expertise and skill of the Africans at work there. Africans also grew and tended personal gardens and even entire farms on Hispaniola. What’s more Spanish settlement and even legal control was only restricted to a small area around San Domingo, while Africans and Indians mainly ran the rest of the Island.
Archaeological finds have turned up examples of early Iron works, pottery, and settlements that were built totally separate from Spanish control. These all show a clear example of Africans settling and intermarrying with local Indians.
Spanish slavery was not the same “chattel” type slavery that the British, French or Dutch instituted.
