THE TIMES IN HISTORY WHEN SLAVES TOOK THEIR MASTERS TO COURT AND WON

The African American people resisted slavery in different ways. Their manner of resistance varied from region to region. While some slaves escaped, others took up arms, however, one form of resistance stood out. It was the process of the enslaved suing their masters for their freedom. During the period of slavery, the enslaved considered all avenues, and they were ready and willing to sacrifice to be freeborns. However, some of them resorted to violent ways, especially in early America where the slaves were not properly enlightened about the law and their rights. Ironically, the early law could both enslave Africans and also liberate them because during that time America was still forming its identity. Then, even up till today, people came to the country to liberate themselves one way or another. 

         Two Frenchmen visited America in 1831, they travelled to most regions of the country and wrote about their experiences. It was an intellectual tour, both men noticed the societal contradictions in the United States. They found out that "the rule of Law coexisted with savage violence, they discovered throughout America a broad equality of manners and a deep inequality of wealth", most of all they were astonished by the coexistence of freedom with slavery and equality with racism. A scholar writes that there was so much bondage amid so much liberty. 

        The American court system was not spared from this complexity, as it opened loopholes that allowed slaves to sue for their freedom. An example was the case of Elizabeth Freeman of Western Massachusetts. She was severely abused by her master's wife and brilliantly sought a pathway to self-liberation. Elizabeth left the house and went to a Lawyer asking if she could claim her liberty under the Law. The Lawyer was surprised and inquired how she knew about the Law. According to Theodore, Elizabeth proclaimed the human right that said that, "all were born free and equal" and that she was not a dumb beast. Theodore was impressed by her response and decided to take her case to the county court in 1781. Elizabeth won her freedom and became a living legend in western Massachusetts. She was brave and intelligently sought her freedom using the rules of a Nation against its backward interest. 

          In 1846 the State of Louisiana caught on the strategy of some enslaved individuals to win their freedom. So they enacted a Law that essentially stated that no enslaved individual could win their freedom even if their master took them to live in a free state or a free country. Josephine, an enslaved woman in New Orleans was taken to New York in 1841 and was on free soil for years. When she returned to New Orleans, she sued her master because she was on free soil before 1846. She won her freedom but her master appealed to the Louisiana Supreme Court, the Chief Justice wrote his decision, confirming Josephine's freedom. 

       The Courts and other States were open to slaves suing for their freedom. In Massachusetts about a few percent of African slaves gained their freedom before 1775 in many cases by their efforts. However, they did not all go through a legal process. In 1765 an enslaved woman named Jenny accused her master of unlawfully taking her with him for arms. The Judge and her master did not take her seriously, she was ordered to remain in slavery and she was required to pay cost. Jenny obstinately pursued her case and it was brought before the Massachusetts Supreme Court, the Court ordered her to be set free and that her master pay damages. 

     This history touches on how people of African descent, impacted the ideas of freedom and liberty in America. Thereby, shaping it into the liberty standard, it seeks to attain in this era.