Slave drivers straddled collaboration and rebellion leadership simultaneously
Evidence
At the same time they were community leaders among the slaves. Often chosen because of the respect they already enjoyed on the plantation, as drivers they achieved more power, adding fear to this respect, as well as the ability to help weak or sick slaves and to allow some to leave the plantations at night or on weekends. A manual for prospective plantation masters advised them to be wary of their drivers, who excelled at maintaining an illusion of perfect devotion to the whites but were also close to the most rebellious of the slaves on the plantation, whom they spared from punishment. — Dubois, Laurent, Avengers of the New World_ The Story of…, 140
Categorization
Category: Contrarian or Surprising Claims
Related
- Slave drivers were simultaneously collaborators and clandestine community leaders loyal to rebels (similarity 0.93)
- Slave drivers balanced complicity with the master against leadership of the enslaved community (similarity 0.88)
- Slave drivers were worth double the market price of ordinary slaves (similarity 0.85)
- Sugar plantations organized slaves into disciplined work-gangs under drivers. (similarity 0.85)
- The revolt was led by the most favored slaves, shocking planters (similarity 0.78)