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Slaves and the Revolution Aims and Realities
The piece surveys slave status and participation in the American Revolution, noting slaves numbered about 500,000 in 1776 and were legally denied personhood and rights under colonial law. It highlights regional differences, manumission attempts, and figures such as Crispus Attucks, Peter Salem, Olaudah Equiano, and Henry Laurens, showing limited slave influence on the war’s outcome.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Associated Press
Thomas Day
Janet Haw
South
America
New England
Africa
Peter Faneuil
Boston
Olaudah Equiano
Nigeria
Sam Adams
Virginia
Thomas Jefferson
Henry Laurens
South Carolina
Congress
John
George Washington
Crispus Attucks
Thomas Jeremiah
Charleston
Harbor Mouth Bar