proslavery

American  

[proh-sley-vuh-ree, -sleyv-ree] / proʊˈsleɪ və ri, -ˈsleɪv ri /

adjective

1. favoring slavery.

2. U.S. History. favoring the continued enslavement of Black people, or opposed to ending or altering the institution of slavery.

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noun

1. the favoring or support of slavery.

proslavery British  

/ ˌprəʊˈsleɪvərɪ /

adjective

1. in favour of or supporting slavery

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Other Word Forms

• proslaver noun
• proslaveryism noun

Etymology

Origin of proslavery

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40; pro- ¹ + slavery

Example Sentences

When a Kentucky constitutional convention finally did meet, it was dominated by conservatives who actually strengthened the proslavery laws, to Clay’s chagrin.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 3, 2025

But although Johnson, an abolitionist, intended the scene to humanize African Americans, the artwork would go on to be used as proslavery propaganda.

From Washington Post • Dec. 17, 2022

In the alleys behind some of those rowhouses, artist Eastman Johnson had spent time with people who were less than pleased about the election of a proslavery Democrat.

From Washington Post • Dec. 17, 2022

This proslavery ruling explicitly made the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional; implicitly, it made Douglas’s popular sovereignty unconstitutional.

From Textbooks • Dec. 30, 2014

In short, the historical record itself, and not just our own omniscient imaginations, provides the requisite evidence from which we can reconstruct the response to the proslavery argument.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis