2,030 Abibisika (Black Gold) Points

Rank: Unranked Newbie

” The Black Jacobins” was written by Cyril Lionel Robert James, a Trinidadian around 1938 and then revised in 1962. James was an educator and a School Administrator who later became a political philosopher and activist. His activisim is reflected in his seminal work, ” The Black Jacobins”, which is a call to arms for the oppressed people of Afrikan descent to fight for what they believe in. The book predates the liberation of Afrikan states and was to serve as an outline for Afrikans rebellion against oppressive European rule. The Black Jacobins had contributed to the inspiration of a generation of uprising and agency for the cause of sovereignty and freedom. This historical text records the struggles, confrontation and successful resistance against better armed enslavers and as their collaborators. The book is written from a Marxist paradigm, thus James chronicles the relentless day to day struggle of the people of Haiti to overcome the oppression.

The Black Jacobins primarily depicts the prolonged revolution of Afrikans in Haiti, from 1791 to 1803, and the legacy of its leader, Toussaint L’ Ouverture. The text also delves into the conditions endured by the enslaved people during their capture in Afrika, the Middle Passage, and life on the Island. James reports the tactics used by European enslavers in their hunt for human prey that was the basis of European economic and hegemony. He goes further to expose the collaborative role of certain classes of Afrikans. James cites the events that shaped the Island country, the destiny of enslaved people on Saint -Dominique, as well as the struggle that made Toussaint L’ Ouverture a leader.