Saamaka communities secure recognition of freedom

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...

Enslaved people took up arms near the Stono River and moved toward Spanish Florida, where some escapees could obtain freedom. Colonial forces crushed the rebellion. It demonstrated collective...

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...

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....

Prince Hall and fourteen other Black men were initiated into a British military Masonic lodge in Boston. The step helped create an institutional foundation for Black mutual aid and public leadership...

Virginia’s royal governor promised freedom to enslaved people owned by rebels who joined British forces. Many seized the opportunity, but the proclamation was a military measure rather than...