Slavery and Freedom in the American North

In this course we will study how the “American North,” constituted by New England, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, became a place of enslavement. Although often treated as a cradle of freedom, we will explore how the region’s colonists imported African slaves and enslaved and exported Native Americans. Through lecture, discussion, and primary sources, we will examine the transatlantic slave trade of Africans and Native Americans, the communities built by enslaved and free people, the impact of the American Revolution, the creation of gradual abolition statues, and the perpetuation of enslavement until the Civil War. We will also grapple with the role of memory in history, as the region’s slaveholding past is often ignored by its inhabitants. 2 hrs lect./1 hr. disc.