Featuring: Larry Kenneth Alexander
Transcript:
In the years leading up to the American Revolution, seismic shifts in the British Empire unsettled the foundations of colonial America. Parliament’s abolition of slave codes in 1766 and the landmark Somerset decision in 1772, which declared slavery legally untenable in the kingdom, sent ripples across the Atlantic. These decisions were not merely legal milestones but existential threats to America’s colonial system, which was deeply rooted in the exploitation of enslaved labor.
On April 19, 1775, the American Revolution erupted. Yet beneath its fervor lay an inconvenient truth: a rebellion against British governance was being waged by colonists who simultaneously upheld slavery, contradicting their claims of fighting for equality and humanity. In the early months of the Revolution, the Patriots barred Black colonials from joining their cause. However, the course of the conflict shifted dramatically on November 5, 1775.
On that day, Virginia’s royal governor, Lord Dunmore, issued a proclamation that rocked the American colonies. He declared freedom for any enslaved Black person who would take up arms for the Crown—a bold and strategic maneuver that became England’s Southern strategy. This plan aimed to dismantle the rebellion not merely through military might but by striking at the heart of the colonial economic and social order, which relied heavily on slavery.
Lord Dunmore’s proclamation did more than offer freedom—it ignited hope and defiance among the enslaved, transforming them into active agents of their destiny. Within days, hundreds of formerly enslaved individuals donned the red coats of British soldiers, bearing the slogan “Liberty to Slaves” on their uniforms. On November 15, 1775, these soldiers, alongside British forces, secured a resounding victory at the Battle of Kemp’s Landing. This moment marked a profound shift, as the ideals of freedom and liberty, stitched onto the sashes of Black soldiers, directly challenged the Patriots’ cause.
As historian Thomas Slaughter reveals in Independence: The Tangled Roots of the American Revolution, the Patriots’ cause was not universally embraced. At no point did more than 45% of white colonists support the rebellion, and one-third of white Americans fought for the Crown. Dunmore’s proclamation enfranchised 500 Black colonials, who were English subjects by law, exposing an uncomfortable truth: the Patriots were not the main voice of the colonies. They were a faction, a minority. The militarization of enslaved Black men transformed the Revolution into more than just a struggle for independence from Britain—it became a reckoning with the institution of slavery itself.
The Battle of Kemp’s Landing was more than a tactical victory for the British. It was a moral inflection point that exposed the hypocrisy of a revolution claiming to fight for liberty while denying it to so many. It forced the Patriots to confront the stark reality that their cries of freedom rang hollow in the ears of those they oppressed.
Consider the profound symbolism of this moment: among the prisoners taken was a Patriot whose captor was none other than his former enslaved person. This dramatic reversal of roles sent a thunderclap across the colonies, reminding all that the ideals of freedom and equality could not coexist with the brutal reality of slavery.
Let us remember this pivotal moment not as a footnote but as a testament to the power of courage and agency. It serves as a reminder that the struggle for liberty is not bound by race, status, or circumstance. It is a universal cry that, when answered with conviction, can turn the tide of history.
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