after Spanish colonists stopped using American Indians in the Caribbean for labor, they did what to work the land?

Answer 1

After Spanish colonists in the Caribbean ceased using American Indians for labor, they increasingly turned to African slaves to work the land. The decimation of the Indigenous population due to diseases, violence, and harsh labor conditions made it difficult for colonists to rely on Native Americans. To meet the labor demands of plantations, especially for cash crops like sugar, they began to import enslaved Africans in large numbers. This shift led to the establishment of the transatlantic slave trade, which became a critical component of the economy in the Caribbean and elsewhere in the Americas.