The Stolen Rest: How History and Hegemony Haunt Black Sleep

 

For centuries, sleep has been treated as a luxury or a biological necessity. But for Black Americans, sleep has historically been a battlefield. When we discuss the legacy of slavery, we often focus on the physical labor, yet we rarely talk about the systematic deprivation of rest as a mechanism of power.

1. The Historical Weaponization of Exhaustion

In the era of chattel slavery, sleep wasn't just scarce; it was regulated. Slave masters understood that a well-rested person is a person with the cognitive clarity to plan, rebel, or escape.

• Forced Vigilance: Enslaved people were often forced to work from "can see to can't see," followed by nighttime chores.

• The Sound of Terror: Constant noise, the threat of nighttime "patrols," and the lack of secure housing meant that sleep was never deep—it was a state of semi-conscious survival.

• The Psychological Toll: Sleep deprivation was used to break the spirit, inducing a state of permanent "brain fog" that made subjugation easier to maintain.

2. The Modern "Sleep Gap"

The "I’ll sleep when I’m dead" hustle culture hits differently when your ancestors were never allowed to sleep in the first place. Today, data consistently shows that Black Americans get less sleep—and lower quality sleep—than white Americans. This isn't a coincidence; it’s a continuation.

• Environmental Racism: Black communities are more likely to be located in areas with higher noise pollution, light pollution, and poorer air quality—all enemies of REM sleep.

• Hypervigilance: The "weathering" effect of daily racism keeps the nervous system in a state of "fight or flight." It is hard to fall into a deep slumber when your body is subconsciously scanning for threats.

• Economic Pressure: The necessity of working multiple jobs or navigating unpredictable shift work (which disproportionately affects Black workers) creates a structural barrier to a consistent circadian rhythm.

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3. Contrasting Ideas: Biology vs. Autonomy

While the history is undeniable, there are two ways to look at how we move forward:

Perspective A: The Trauma Lens	Perspective B: The Resistance Lens
Focuses on epigenetics and how the stress of slavery may be "baked" into the DNA, affecting cortisol levels across generations.	Focuses on Rest as Resistance. It frames sleep not as a biological lapse, but as a political act of reclaiming one's body.
Views the lack of sleep as a symptom of ongoing oppression that requires systemic policy changes (housing, wage gaps).	Views the pursuit of sleep as a radical self-care practice that defies the capitalist and racist expectations of "productivity."

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Reclaiming the Night

If the goal of slavery was to turn human beings into tireless machines, then choosing to rest is a rejection of that machine-like status.

We must acknowledge that the "Sleep Gap" is not a personal failure of Black people to "just go to bed earlier." It is a structural residue of a system designed to keep a population exhausted. Recognizing this history is the first step toward dreaming of a future where rest is no longer a privilege, but a right.

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What do you think? Is rest a personal responsibility, or do we need to treat the "Sleep Gap" as a public health crisis rooted in history?

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I think A LOT about how enslaved black people were subjected to sleep deprivation by white slave masters... Black NEVER got to sleep. Slavery and racism impact black people's sleep habits to this very day. pic.twitter.com/UHT4HIAje3

— kevin blue (@kevinblue345) February 17, 2026