Stono rebels seek freedom beyond South Carolina

Antonio de Montesinos condemned colonists’ exploitation of Indigenous people in a sermon in Hispaniola. This challenged religious excuses for domination, but Indigenous voices were not given control...

An alliance of Pueblo communities attacked Spanish colonial authorities after repression of their religious practices and labor exploitation. The revolt drove Spanish colonists from New Mexico for...

Four Germantown Quakers petitioned against buying and holding people in slavery, arguing that different skin color did not justify unequal treatment. Their meeting did not adopt immediate abolition....

Zumbi, a leader of the Palmares communities formed by people escaping slavery, was killed by colonial forces. Palmares challenged the plantation system by maintaining settlements outside enslavers’...

Enslaved Africans seized the fort at Coral Bay and began a revolt against Danish plantation rule. Collective planning and knowledge of military organization helped sustain resistance. The uprising...

After sustained resistance by people who had escaped slavery, Dutch colonial authorities concluded a treaty with the Ndyuka. It recognized their freedom and autonomy, but also required the return of...

Saamaka leaders concluded a peace treaty with the Dutch after decades of resistance. Recognition of their communities’ freedom did not abolish slavery elsewhere in Suriname; provisions concerning...

Enslaved people rose on a Berbice plantation in resistance to Dutch colonial slavery. The rebellion expanded into a major struggle for freedom associated with Cuffy and other leaders. Plantation...

James Somerset’s legal challenge prevented his enslaver from forcibly shipping him from England to Jamaica. The ruling limited an enslaver’s power in England but did not abolish slavery throughout the...

A petition submitted under the name Felix asked Massachusetts authorities to address the condition of enslaved people. The petitioners asserted their humanity and appealed collectively for liberty....