The institution of slavery within the United States introduced a darkness that looms within history, never to be forgotten. However could that history have foreshadowed what had yet to come, such as Nazi Germany? It is clear within history that genocide played a critical role within the establishment of Nazi Germany as Adolf Hitler fought to wipe out an entire ethnicity from the nation during the Holocaust. However, some argue that this idea of genocide began before Nazi Germany within the institution of slavery in the United States. Alex Hinton, director of the Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights at Rutgers University and author of It Can Happen Here: White Power and the Threat of Genocide in the U.S., defines genocide as not only the killing of groups of a specific ethnicity but also attempted group destruction through “bodily or mental harm”. With this definition kept in mind, slavery within the United States can easily be defined as mass genocide against African Americans. 12 Years a Slave by Solomon Northup is an autobiography by a former slave detailing his experience and in chapter thirteen, page 102 Northup exposed, “the sharpest sting of the rawhide could not arouse me.” This single example of many instances of bodily harm detailed within the book exposes that African Americas experienced bodily harm due to their ethnicity and racist sentiment at the time in a consistent manner. However, bodily harm was not the only part of the definition of genocide previously stated. There also was the notion of “mental harm” targeted against a specific group due solely on their ethnic background. Black historian Sterling Stuckey introduces a new outlook on slaves mental health affected by the institution of slavery, using support of works produced by Herbert Aptheker, Kenneth Stampp, Richard Wade, and the Bauers, to introduce the argument that “slavery, despite its brutality, was not so ‘closed’ that it robbed most of the slaves of their humanity.” This claim suggests that despite the treatment of dehumanization of slaves at this time, it did not serve to produce affects of making these individuals feel less than human. However, Northup in 12 Years a Slave recalls a different personal outlook during his experience seen in chapter thirteen, page 103 when he discusses his near death experience’s affect on his master as, “the death of an animal worth a thousand dollars.” When recalling this horrible memory in his recount, he refers to himself not an individual human being but rather simply an “animal” with no value as human. Totalitarianism completely takes hold of individual human lives and infringes on any of their personal freedoms, giving their entire lives up to those within power. One way Northup in 12 Years a Slave suggests this kind of control by a higher power within his recount is in chapter thirteen, page 103 when Northup wrote, “he directed me to eat no meat and to partake of no more food than was absolutely necessary to sustain life.” Masters and mistresses at this time had complete control over every aspect of these slaves lives, including controlling basic necessities for survival. We saw this in Nazi Germany as well in concentration camps where Jews forced into labor and rationalized with basic necessities for survival such as food as well. Another aspect of totalitarianism is the installment of terror which was seen in 12 Years a Slave chapter 16, page 127 when Northup explained the concept of overseers as, “armed with pistols, bowie knife, whip, and accompanied by several dogs… dogs are necessary to overhaul a fugitive who may take to his heels…” Slaves were terrorized into submission by use of both the threat and implementation of bodily harm for not performing well enough or trying to flee the institution. Jews within concentration camps in Nazi Germany faced the same installments of terror with Nazis carrying weapons at all times and systems such as gas chambers and more. African-American author Ralph Ellison in his interview insists that African Americans now must “assert our own sense of values.” During the time of slavery this was an impossible idea, as those within powerful positions created the sense of values for African Americans, never allowing them a voice or choice. Later on in history we see Nazi Germany take the same steps in silencing and implementing genocide based on ethnic backgrounds alone. It can certainly reign true that slavery within the United States foreshadowed to come the Holocaust in Nazi Germany.