How did slavery influence the society and economy of the southern colonies?

The enslavement of African people was the foundation of the economy and social structure of the Southern colonies of America from the early 17th century to the late 19th century. The economy of the Southern colonies was based on agriculture and the production of profitable exports such as cotton, tobacco, indigo, and sugar cane. Slaves were brought from Africa as a source of essentially free labor and worked on farms and plantations to raise these...

The enslavement of African people was the foundation of the economy and social structure of the Southern colonies of America from the early 17th century to the late 19th century. The economy of the Southern colonies was based on agriculture and the production of profitable exports such as cotton, tobacco, indigo, and sugar cane. Slaves were brought from Africa as a source of essentially free labor and worked on farms and plantations to raise these crops. Some slaves worked in the homes of their masters as servants and had minimally better treatment, but were still considered objects to be owned with no rights. The labor of People of Color in the American colonies during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries was exploited for economic gain which reinforced the social structure that had come to develop around this system of production.

In this time, the only people who were really counted as "people" were white, land-owning, Christian men. Ownership of  land in particular was a huge factor in a man's status. If a man owned a large amount of land, he had the opportunity to raise profitable crops. Some families were at an advantage, having arrived in the colonies from Europe earlier than others, and had established ownership of land and agricultural production, boosting their socioeconomic status. The most successful families owned very large plantations, but required slave labor to actually work the land and produce raw materials for export. This created a social structure where someone who owned more slaves had a greater economic benefit and were valued more in their society. 

Life in the American colonies offered a "blank slate" of opportunity for many, and those who were  most successful in the South often made their profits on the backs of numerous enslaved African people.