Discrimination in the Colonial Americas

It is interesting to contrast the forms of discrimination evident within the early history of the Americas.  On one hand, there is Mary Rowlandson's War and Captivity, which details her encounters with Native Americans.  On the other hand sits Thomas Jefferson and his Notes on the State of Virginia.  While these texts refer to two completely different races, Native Americans and African Americans, respectively, they both exhibit to an extent some form of racism, or at least stereotypes based on race.  However, the methods each writer employs in order to justify his or her discrimination are completely different.  Mary Rowlandson, coming from a strong Puritan background, uses religion to back up her ideas.  Many times, Rowlandson refers to the Indians as animals and hell-like creatures.  The Puritans in general attributed the Native Americans' behavior to the times of Eden, before civilization.  The idea of this uncivilized state gave the Puritans justification to taking over the Native American lands.  Thomas Jefferson, who came later in history than Mary Rowlandson, branches off of these religious ideas into science.  Jefferson makes an early attempt at scientific racism, as he uses his observations to explain why he thinks African Americans are inferior to Caucasians.  Despite the rift between religion and science, the ideas of both of these authors stem from discrimination.  Clearly, the idea of judgment based on race or geographic origin carried over from Puritan belief into Yankee thought, but what of religion?  Thomas Jefferson employs only science in order to prove what are essentially the same points as the Puritans' points, and the final product looks just as, if not more, ridiculous.