282 years ago, on September 9, 1739, the Stono Rebellion began. This rebellion began with a group of 20 rebels who were fighting for their freedom. As they marched south to Florida, they rescued other slaves and pushed through any resistance that tried to oppress their march for freedom.

Quickly, a White militia was formed and closed in on the 60 rebels as they marched south. The rebellion ended with dozens of enslaved and slave-owners being killed.  All enslaved members of the rebellion who survived were captured and executed.

Following the swift and bloody end of to the rebellion, the implementation of Slave Codes and the Negro Act of 1740 were employed. The Negro Act of 1740 was an effort to control the minds and behaviors of the enslaved. These laws and codes were enforced to prevent the enslaved from becoming educated, to gather without White supervision, and to even grow their own food.

Rebellions like this took place across the south over the 250 years of slavery. Every time there was a resistance from the enslaved, it was followed by extreme violence against Blacks, both freed and enslaved, and laws created and enforced to keep the enslaved afraid and silent.

Another famous rebellion, Nat Turner’s Slave Rebellion, took place almost 100 years after the Stono Rebellion. Nat Turner’s Rebellion started and ended the same way as the Stono Rebellion and resulted in laws that prevented enslaved people from being educated and to gather independently without White supervision.

Even though it has been 281 years since the Negro Act of 1740 was put in place, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) are still impacted by those racist policies today.

“Today, we continue to fight laws that systemically restrict access within our communities to quality education, clean water, nourishing food, and even our right to gather without police surveillance and harassment. “ –Push Black

#BIPOC #PushBlackNow

please email diversity@commteam.org