The Revolution is Spiritual
Black people freed themselves from slavery and colonialism.
August 14, 1791, Voudou Priest, Dutty Boukman lead his people in a ritual that ultimately manifested in the abolition of slavery and the end of colonial rule, making Haiti the first postcolonial black republic.
9 days before the violent revolt and 13 years before Haiti officially achieved independence, the people freed themselves from slavery by the emancipation of their minds and their allegiance to their oppressor’s god.
Boukman renounced the “white man’s god” over a pig sacrifice and the recitation of the following prayer:
The god who created the earth; who created the sun that gives us light. The god who holds up the ocean; who makes the thunder roar. Our God who has ears to hear. You who are hidden in the clouds; who watch us from where you are. You see all the that the white has made us suffer. The white man’s god asks him to commit crimes. But the god within us wants us to do good. Our god, who is so good, so just,
He orders us to revenge our wrongs. It’s He who will direct our arms and bring us the victory. It’s He who will assist us. We all should throw away the image of the white men’s god who is so pitiless.
Listen to the voice for liberty that speaks in all our hearts.
Though the enslaved people were from various parts of Africa and the Americas, their spiritual nature and collective intentions for freedom united them to liberate themselves.
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