Slave No More: Self-Liberation before Abolitionism in the Americas

Aline Helg's Slave No More explores how enslaved Africans across the Western Hemisphere managed to free themselves hundreds of years before the formation of white-run abolitionist movements. She underscores the agency of those who managed to become free people of color and assesses the strategies they created and utilized, including flight and marronage, manumission by legal document, military service, and revolt.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 360 pages
Publication date: 30 November 2018
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press

Aline Helg's groundbreaking work, "Slave No More," delves into the remarkable story of enslaved Africans across the Western Hemisphere who achieved freedom hundreds of years before the emergence of white-led abolitionist movements. Spanning over three centuries, from early colonization to the American and Haitian revolutions, Spanish American independence, and abolition in the British Caribbean, Helg offers a comprehensive view of resistance and struggle. She highlights the agency of those who managed to break free from slavery, emphasizing the strategies they devised and employed.

While acknowledging the formidable forces sustaining slavery, Helg identifies four primary liberation strategies: flight and marronage, legal manumission, military service in exchange for promised emancipation, and revolt. She examines these actions at both individual and community levels, considering their impact within national and international political contexts. By integrating the broader currents of liberal abolitionism with an original analysis of forms of manumission and marronage, "Slave No More" expands our understanding of the significant role played by enslaved men, women, and children in the gradual abolition of slavery.

This seminal work sheds light on the complex and multifaceted nature of resistance and liberation, challenging preconceived notions and providing a fresh perspective on the history of slavery. It is a testament to the resilience and ingenuity of those who fought against oppression and paved the way for greater equality and freedom.

Weight: 572g
Dimension: 159 x 233 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781469649634