When one looks at the colonization of the New World from the Spanish and Portugal crown, the resources were limited. Even though the Iberian colonizers were of great minority with indigenous folks, they still managed to control most of the Western Hemisphere for a few centuries. How did this come about? Historians state Latin America domination by an act of hegemony in the colonization era. Along the hegemony came the issue of slavery in the world. The following is a summary of the "hegemonic forces," examples of resistance by individuals, and the exploration of slavery and its impact on the new world.
One of the biggest forms of the cultural hegemony forces that overran the indigenous peoples was religion. The indigenous, along with the slaves gave in to the Europeans "true religion." Even though this "true religion," Catholicism started in Europe, this is one of the factors that contributed to Europe's control over America. The "Church" evolved in Rome, and a lot of nuns, priest, and bishops were descendants form Europe. According to the Spanish and Portugal crown, the only person of high hierarchy status, could question the Divine Right. The royal government controlled all the religious activities that occurred. If one were to offend the catholic doctrine or teachings, it was considered a criminal offense. The church monopolized their power by enforcing religious teaching in all the educational programs. The catholic clergy even banned books that were not sutible for the religious doctrine. The indigenous people learned of the catholic holidays. These milestones accompanied celebrations of carnival and epiphanies such as Easter, Lent and the Holy Week. Even individuals" lives were a cornerstone of the catholic doctrine. The church sacraments kept records for baptisms along with weddings. The church even played a role in time, during each day. The bell controlling the hours of work, and the times that was for praying and resting.
