He screamed when the soldier grabbed him – but the soldier was a Redcoat! In minutes, he’d joined the fight, shooting at the white men who had enslaved his people.
But could he, a Black Loyalist fighting in the American Revolution, trust England to keep its promise to free his family – or would they break it, like all white men had?
As the savage battle raged behind her, his wife scribbled their names in The “Book of Negroes.” This book, the Brits said, meant more than any false assurances of a slaver like George Washington.
The British promised freedom and land in Canada – it seemed too good to be true.
More than 3,500 formerly enslaved Africans and their families were evacuated to Nova Scotia, Canada, and relabeled “Free People of Color.”
But was it all that was promised?
No. Thousands more were left behind, re-captured into American slavery. In Canada, Blacks got meager supplies and the worst land, if any.
But that wasn’t the end of the story.
Some were able to persist – creating free Black communities that still thrive today! Others relocated to Sierra Leone and founded Freetown, one of the first African American communities in Africa.
We can never trust white saviors to do right by us – but we can always use any available opportunity to fight for self-sufficiency and freedom!