Isaac Margolis, Political Science & History
Advisor: Marisa Fuentes, History
This project seeks to analyze the impacts of the 1791 Haitian Revolution on the social and racial structure of colonial and post-colonial San Domingue/Haiti. In it, I analyze speeches, correspondence, and government documents from the predominant racial groups at the time to break down how each of them viewed race before and after the war. Specifically, it looks at the role that the violence of the rebellion played in transforming perspectives of race and racial hierarchy within colonial whites, enslaved Africans, and free people of color. These findings illustrate that the chaos and mass violence of the revolution broke down the racial hierarchy on the island, while forcing the white colonists to redevelop an oppressive social utility to slavery.
