Although his argument is later defeated by other historians who argue Sambo was not the norm for most slaves, Elkins remained important because he demanded that it was not racial traits which caused Sambo, but a system of terror that demanded them to adjust to the new role of contented, subservient slaves. Although at odds with Elkin's beliefs, Sambo was a fazade and resistance did occur. Its forms, however, were not large-scale or readily identified.
Slaves were forced to work for ends that did not benefit themselves, and reacted as any other race or caste would; they found little or no satisfaction in helping owners reap the rewards for their toil. Because of this, an abhorrence for labor developed alongside mild forms of resistance to avoid it. Raymond and Alice Bauer present five common means of doing so. The first takes the form of slowing production by doing work with a sense of lethargy. The second is to feign illness or malinger. A studied showed that up to 398 out of 1,429 days were lost due to this type of conduct (Bauer - 409). The third was the destruction of property. "The indifference of the slaves to the welfare of the masters extended itself to the complete contempt for proper values (Bauer 401)."" Slaves were shown to abuse the farm's animals and break tools; actions that led to the invention of the Negro-hoe, a four-pound hoe that was difficult to yield but hard to break. The fourth was the injuring of themselves, running away, and suicide. Slaves realized their value as property and used it to their marginal advantage. By injuring themselves, they avoided work; by committing suicide or running away, they freed themselves from bondage; and any of the above caused a decrease in the owner's capital. The fifth was infanticide. Again, the slaves, being conscious of their situation and material value, may murder their children to deny their master's free capital and save the children from the horrors of slavery.