Social and Economic Impact of Spanish Colonization

Economic Transformation:
  - Spanish arrival changed social and economic structures in the Americas.
  - Incomienda System:
    - Forced Native Americans to labor on large-scale plantations and mines.
  - Demographic Crisis:
    - Massive deaths among indigenous populations due to European diseases (e.g., smallpox, measles).
    - Shift to African slavery as a labor source.
  - Caste System:
    - Imposed racial categorization by Spanish:
      - Top: Native-born Spaniards (Peninsulares).
      - Middle: Mixed ethnicities.
      - Bottom: Africans and Native Americans.

Cultural Interactions:
  - Evolving mutual understandings between Europeans and Native Americans.
  - Divergent views on:
    - Religion
    - Family structure
    - Land use (commodity vs. spiritual connection)

Ethical Debates:
  - Competing worldviews led to formal debates in Europe about the treatment of Native Americans.
  - Juan Guinees de Sepulveda:
    - Argued Native Americans were "less than human" and benefitted from labor conditions.
  - Bartolome de las Casas:
    - Advocated for the dignity of Native Americans.
  - Outcome:
    - Sepulveda's perspective won, allowing harsh labor systems to continue during colonization.