History Extra Podcast: "How Enslaved People Fought for Freedom Across the Atlantic"
Date: October 14, 2025
Host: Danny Byrd (Immediate Media)
Guest: Dr. Sudhir Hazari Singh (Balliol College, University of Oxford)
Main Theme:
A deep exploration of enslaved people’s resistance across the Atlantic, focusing on the forgotten heroes and heroines who shaped movements for emancipation, the global impact of the Haitian revolution, and the crucial role of women.
Episode Overview
In this compelling conversation, historian Dr. Sudhir Hazari Singh and host Danny Byrd discuss the remarkable stories and strategies of resistance among enslaved Africans and their descendants throughout the Atlantic world. Using insights from Dr. Hazari Singh’s new book, Daring to Be Free, the discussion peels back layers of overlooked and erased histories, foregrounds the agency of enslaved people themselves, and examines how their struggles shaped abolition, democracy, and modern concepts of justice.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Introduction: Centering Forgotten Heroes
[02:44]
- The episode opens with the story of Solitude, a woman from Guadeloupe, as a symbolic figure of resistance whose contributions had been long ignored even in her homeland.
- Her story reflects the anonymity, tragedy, and heroism of countless individuals who resisted enslavement across the Atlantic.
Notable Quote:
"Solitude inaugurates the book, as it were, for a number of reasons...her role in the anti-slavery struggle...was long ignored. So she was a very good symbol of the story I was trying to tell—namely, slave resistance was something that was ongoing, and that it had many anonymous, unsung heroes and heroines."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [02:57]
2. The Challenges of Researching Enslaved People’s Stories
[05:49]
- Documenting resistance is challenging due to sparse archival materials, most of which were created by oppressors.
- Reliance on fragmentary archives, oral histories, and generational collective memory was essential to reconstructing these stories.
Memorable Analogy:
"It was a bit like having a jigsaw puzzle...lots of different pieces scattered together. And what I tried to do...was to piece all the different bits...so that we would have a unified picture."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [07:48]
3. The Power of Language and Terminology
[08:27]
- Dr. Hazari Singh explains his preference for terms like 'enslaved' rather than 'slave,' emphasizing the non-voluntary, dehumanizing nature of enslavement.
- Language used by slavers was designed to legitimize oppression—today's terminology must counter that legacy while retaining historical accuracy.
Notable Quote:
"The language about slavery has always been very political because enslavement was, of course, a political act...one of the problems with the word slave is that it can lead you to think that this is just like an occupation or a job...But actually, slaves didn't choose to be slaves. It was something that was forced upon them."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [08:44]
4. African Roots of Resistance
[11:38]
- The conversation turns to Africa, tracing resistance traditions before transatlantic transportation.
- African military, spiritual, and cultural practices profoundly shaped later resistance; for example, West African Vodun became central in Haiti.
- Many captives were already militarily skilled or religiously motivated to oppose enslavement.
Key Point:
"Religion, religious spirituality, plays a very important role in shaping people's propensity to resist...vodun...is basically the spiritual basis for the revolutionaries who fight against slavery in Saint Domingue."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [13:36]
5. The Haitian Revolution: Revolutionary Model and Myth
[17:35]
- The Haitian Revolution is described as both a practical and mythic inspiration: it proved that enslaved people could defeat empires and establish a free state.
- The news and symbolism of Haiti rippled across the Atlantic, bolstering movements in the Caribbean, the US, and elsewhere.
Notable Quote:
"From the moment Haiti emerges, it stands as a beacon for enslaved peoples all across the Atlantic world, a beacon for their own struggles for freedom and for independence and for justice."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [18:09]
6. Women as Leaders and Strategists
[21:28]
- Women, from African priestesses to fighters like Sanité Bélair in Haiti, were central as combatants, planners, and intelligence gatherers.
- Their proximity to plantation owners as domestic workers often put them in strategic positions.
Notable Quote:
"Very often women play very prominent roles during slave revolts...women were in a very essential strategic position, because more often than not, they were in the plantation house. They would be able to gather the right sort of intelligence..."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [22:15]
7. Resistance Beyond Rebellion: The Power of Culture
[25:17]
- Resistance was not limited to armed struggle; song, storytelling, rituals, and the preservation of language also became tools of survival and protest.
- Cultural practices camouflaged organizing efforts and maintained solidarity.
Memorable Moment:
"The evidence disproves [the view that culture was conservative] on a massive scale...people are very emphatic in the desire to maintain their languages, their cultural identities...All of those things are things that the enslaved peoples use for their own purposes, but they also deploy them in the course of forming movements of opposition to their slavers."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [26:24]
8. Redefining Abolitionism: Centering Enslaved Voices
[28:54]
- Dr. Hazari Singh challenges the traditional narrative that credits white abolitionists for ending slavery, instead highlighting the decisive, often immediate, demands of the enslaved themselves—especially as manifested through uprisings from Haiti to Jamaica.
- White abolitionist leadership tended toward gradualism and compromise, while those with direct experience pressed for immediate change.
Notable Quote:
"The people who were working for immediate abolition and fighting for it and sometimes being killed for it were the enslaved themselves. That's why I think they are the real abolitionists."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [33:26]
9. Legacies and Debts: Memory, Education, and Reparations
[33:56]
- The episode closes with reflections on the enduring impacts of slavery—economic, educational, and health inequalities in former slave societies.
- Calls for historical recognition, changes to educational curricula, memorialization (such as statues), and a candid dialogue around reparations.
Notable Quote:
"What you really need to do is to show that you're sorry by taking concrete action...if the British government could take its lead from [institutions like Glasgow University or the Church of England], I think we would end up in a much better place."
— Sudhir Hazari Singh [37:10]
Memorable Quotes at a Glance
- “Solitude...was a very good symbol of the story I was trying to tell...slave resistance was something that was ongoing, and that it had many anonymous, unsung heroes and heroines.” [02:57]
- “It was a bit like having a jigsaw puzzle...lots of different pieces scattered together.” [07:48]
- “Slaves didn’t choose to be slaves...it was something that was forced upon them.” [08:44]
- “From the moment Haiti emerges, it stands as a beacon for enslaved peoples all across the Atlantic world.” [18:09]
- “Women were in a very essential strategic position...they would be able to gather the right sort of intelligence.” [22:15]
- “Culture is really at the heart of the rebellious movements...both [African and Enlightenment influences] can work together.” [26:24]
- “The people who were working for immediate abolition...were the enslaved themselves. That’s why I think they are the real abolitionists.” [33:26]
- “We should include all these men and women who fought for freedom from enslavement...they are part of our story, too.” [36:11]
Key Timestamps
- 02:44 — Introducing Solitude and symbolism of resistance
- 05:49 — The archival challenge and reconstructing enslaved histories
- 08:27 — Language, terminology, and politics in the history of slavery
- 11:38 — African origins: spiritual, military, and cultural traditions of resistance
- 17:35 — The Haitian Revolution: impact and mythic significance
- 21:28 — The vital role of women in resistance movements
- 25:17 — Cultural resistance: rituals, song, storytelling as rebellion
- 28:54 — Rethinking abolitionism: centering enslaved voices and action
- 33:56 — The legacies of slavery: memory, education, reparations
This conversation brings to life the agency, creativity, and courage of enslaved people, challenging us to rethink what we remember, whom we honor, and how we understand liberty today.