Colonial governors denied slaves’ freedom rumors by framing them as enemy deception

Evidence

And Sir James Leith, governor of the island, in a lengthy and extraordinary “Address to the Slave Population of the Island of Barbados” warned: … I have learned that a general belief had been mischievously propagated among you, that I was in possession of your manumissions, and that my return to Barbadoes would have put you in possession of your freedom. I can solemnly assure you, that my arrival has been one of the most painful periods of my life; when, in performing my duty, I have not only had to inform you of the cruel deception which the enemies of the state, and still more your own bitter foes, have practiced on both, but to feel myself called on by the offended laws to seek out and still to punish the guilty. — Cedric J. Robinson, Black Marxism_ The Making of the Black…, 796

Categorization

Category: Factual Claims