American Revolutions: A Continental History, 1750-1804

The American Revolution, celebrated as a struggle for liberty and self-determination, was marred by glaring contradictions, particularly the persistence of slavery and the dispossession of Indigenous lands. These contradictions highlight the relationship between ideals of freedom and the realities of racial and territorial oppression. Despite the Revolution’s rhetoric of universal liberty, the founding fathers and the new nation continued to deny these rights to African Americans and Indigenous Americans. This theme explores the dissonance between the revolutionary ideals and the practices of slavery and Indigenous dispossession, revealing the deep-seated racial and colonial dimensions of early American society.

The institution of slavery was a fundamental contradiction of the Revolution. While patriots fought for liberation from British tyranny, they maintained and even strengthened the enslavement of African Americans. The Declaration of Independence’s assertion that “all men are created equal” contrasted with the reality that, at the time, a significant portion of the population was enslaved. This hypocrisy was not lost on contemporaries; both enslaved people and abolitionists pointed out the incongruity between the fight for independence and the continued denial of freedom to enslaved people. The Revolution, however, also provided opportunities for enslaved people to challenge their bondage, with thousands seizing the tumultuous period to escape, join the British forces, or otherwise resist their condition.