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How Elizabeth Freeman won her freedom through the courts in 18th-century Massachusetts.
Born into slavery, Elizabeth Freeman gained her freedom in 1781, eighty years before the American Civil War. Freeman did not escape to Pennsylvania as was common at the time. She gained her freedom through the courts. Upon winning her case, she changed her name to Elizabeth Freeman to celebrate her new life.
Paul Meany is the editor for intellectual history at Libertarianism.org, a project of the Cato Institute. Most of his work focuses on examining thinkers who predate classical liberalism but still articulate broadly liberal attitudes and principles. He is the host of Portraits of Liberty, a podcast about uncovering and exploring underrated figures throughout history who have argued for a freer world. His writing covers a broad range of topics, including proto-feminist writers, Classical Greece and Rome’s influence on the American Founding, ancient Chinese philosophy, tyrannicide, and the first argument for basic income.