The concept and action of revolutions
and rebellions was extremely common during these times throughout the world;
hence this era was commonly referred to as the “Revolutionary Period.” During
our class discussions recently we talked at length about multiple revolutions
that occurred within the Colonies during the early 1800’s. It’s extremely interesting to think about how
the Haitian Revolution of 1796 was the catalyst to all of these acts of
rebellion in the Colonies. Since the technology of this era was nowhere close
to what it is present-day, it’s truly astonishing how word spread about the
Haitian takeover. Furthermore, the willingness of blacks in the Colonies to
take action with the hopes of success similar to that of Haiti.
A question that comes to my mind
when thinking about revolts in the Colonies is: did the blacks know that they
largely outnumbered the Whites within the Colonies? In my opinion, I believe
they had a fairly good idea because it makes more sense to revolt/rebel if you
have a solid reason and potential numbers. Since they had more bodies I believe
more people were willing to take a chance in the mere hopes of finding a better
situation for themselves than slavery provided them.
This issue also brought about
thoughts I had from watching a movie a week or so ago. One night I was watching
Free State of Jones, which told the story about a city in Mississippi (Jones)
and how they created a stronghold there. The most intriguing part of the movie
was that a white man (Matthew McConaughey) was the leader of this “Free State”
that had both whites and blacks. This struck me as odd because after hearing
and reading about the horrors the blacks faced at the hands of white men, I figured
it would be difficult for them to trust a white man. In the movie you are able
to see him slowly gain the trust of the first blacks he encounters. After that
point there is no more question of his loyalty to people of different color. The
main action of their revolt was to overtake a town and create a stronghold
there, which they did. After this they began to take over neighboring areas and
create a larger community for themselves.
It was intriguing to see the
correlations between a historical movie and something we are discussing in
class. The only difference between the two was that in the movie there were no
mentions of sailing to Haiti. The revolts discussed in class all had end goals
of going to Haiti, therefore I wonder how many truly wanted to go to Haiti or
stay in the Colonies and fend off anyone.
Austin Henyon
To answer your question about if the Africans knew that they largely outnumbered the whites, I believe it is doubtful that they knew exactly how large their numbers were. They lived primarily in rural areas, were not allowed by law to learn to read or write, and there was no mass communication such as the telephone. Africans did not have freedom of movement, so their entire lives would be led in a small geographic area. News did spread through word of mouth, however, and the news of the Haitian Revolution did reach many slaves. I think that they may have had hopes that they could revolt and escape to Haiti, because what was the worst that could happen? Those that unsuccessfully escaped received the death penalty, and I think that they often thought that slavery was a fate worse than death. It is hard to answer for the Africans, but I think that Haiti must have sounded like paradise. It was a place where they could create a family, and practice their culture without being whipped, beaten, or separated from their families. The biggest obstacle was the fact that the Colonists had weapons and authority in place that made a revolt hard to successfully achieve.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to me as well to learn about the Haitian rebellion, which was something I had no previous knowledge of. Your question of whether or not they knew how much they outnumbered the white colonists raised another question for me. I recall a class discussion about how the initial slaves of the Transatlantic slave trade did not rebel because it was difficult to do so in a new land which they knew nothing about, in addition to being absolutely terrified. However, as the slave population grew drastically over the years and as they became more accustomed to the land, language, and culture, I wonder why there weren't more rebellions at the time. With the news of the successful Haitian rebellion it is surprising to me that there weren't more notable attempts to escape to freedom.
ReplyDeleteThe ultimate goal of going to Haiti is very interesting because they were not trying to stay in the United States. The fact that doctors at this time claimed that some slaves were mentally ill because they wanted to leave was astonishing. The process of commodification totally intrudes on an individuals human space and renders them as an object.
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