1794-Early: A “free Negro” named Delrrival publicly asserted a radical identity by declaring himself a “good republican” while simultaneously claiming to be …

1794-Early: A “free Negro” named Delrrival publicly asserted a radical identity by declaring himself a “good republican” while simultaneously claiming to be the “enemy of all whites.” This declaration highlighted the specific way that people of color adapted the egalitarian ideology of the French Revolution to the racial realities of the Caribbean. Delrrival was among the many black and brown residents of Saint-Domingue who resisted the Spanish invasion by organizing secret meetings at night. His imprisonment and subsequent transport to Cuba illustrated the colonial state’s fear of the “unmastered” black subject who claimed political agency. Such individual acts of defiance formed the core of a broader movement that refused to accept a return to white supremacist control.