The Black Jacobins: Toussaint L’Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution

Like his mentors Karl Marx and Leon Trotsky, James presents the common people—the “masses”—of both France and San Domingo as playing critical roles in the struggle to end slavery. He credits them with having the wisdom to recognize what was right and, when provoked, with having the power to carry out their will. With the storming of the Bastille, the peasants of France ushered in a revolution committed to the ideal of political equality. When the politicians began to lose their way, the people protested—as James puts it, “there are times when you cannot bluff the people” (79). At times when the politicians did well, as when they passed the decree to abolish slavery, James attributes this progress to the influence of the common people, who reportedly detested the “aristocracy of the skin” (139).

In San Domingo, rebellious slaves began to attack the White slave owners, taking gradual steps towards larger, more coordinated attacks. As Toussaint and others provided much-needed leadership, the former slaves developed into a force that could compete with the world’s elite militaries. Roused to action, the masses proved more than capable, and their sense of justice was no less keen in San Domingo than in France: Despite bribes from his enemies, Toussaint’s soldiers remained loyal to the ideal of liberty that he represented.