1818: A runaway slave who returned to Jamaica testified to seeing “thirty to forty” other fugitives from the British island during his stay in Haiti.

1818: A runaway slave who returned to Jamaica testified to seeing “thirty to forty” other fugitives from the British island during his stay in Haiti. He reported that Haitian sailors frequently encouraged and aided escaping slaves, providing them with safe passage to the black republic. This testimony highlighted the ongoing role of Haiti as a sanctuary for those fleeing bondage in the wider Caribbean. The collaboration between Haitian mariners and Jamaican runaways demonstrated the persistence of the Afro-Atlantic networks of mutual aid. Such accounts reinforced the perception of Haiti as a direct threat to the stability of the neighboring colonial labor systems.