1791-Fall: Following the first news of the black uprising in Saint-Domingue, Spanish officials in Louisiana arrested the free colored militiaman Pedro Bailly…
1791-Fall: Following the first news of the black uprising in Saint-Domingue, Spanish officials in Louisiana arrested the free colored militiaman Pedro Bailly for publicly identifying with the revolutionaries. He was accused of encouraging others to follow the example of the free mulattoes of the Cap and raising issues of racial equality with white officers. At a local ball, Bailly restated his support for the rebellion and revealed that his circle of friends expected to strike “a blow like Guarico”. This arrest reflected the colonial state’s deep anxiety regarding the influence of “black republicans” on the local free nonwhite population. Bailly’s defiance proved that aspirations for liberty were not confined to the islands but had found a potent voice on the mainland.