Bacon’s Rebellion and the Origins of American Racism
Bacon’s Rebellion was a watershed moment in the history of American class struggle. Led by a charismatic demagogue, Nathaniel Bacon, a mass uprising of poor farmers, indentured servants, and African slaves routed the governor and burned down Virginia’s colonial capital of Jamestown.
In the decades that followed, colonial officials increasingly codified race-based slavery and expanded systems of racial control, in large part to cut across the danger of united class struggle by the exploited and oppressed. In a period also marked by violent dispossession and warfare against Indigenous peoples, the roots of modern American racism can be traced to the events of 1676.
This discussion will be introduced by John Peterson, a leading member of the RCA.
Reading list:
Books
- Revolution and Counterrevolution in America, Part One – John Peterson
Articles
