In the Margins

Decades before abolition, enslaved people sued for their freedom in court and won. But today, the only freedom suit most people are familiar with is the case of Dred Scott. So why don't we know more about these early lawsuits? From Massachusetts to Missouri, the history of freedom suits is more complicated than you might think. 

Less than 20 years after the American Revolution, the nation's capital was under threat of total collapse. The culprit? Yellow fever, and the hardest hit city was Philadelphia. The fall of the capital of the United States so soon after a revolution could mean the end of America. While the upper class and politicians ran for the hills in hopes of escaping "impure air", top health officials pleaded for the city's free Black communities to step in to help the rapidly deteriorating capital. Why was this group chosen specifically? How can we apply their story to how Black communities survived disproportionate illness during the COVID epidemic? And is America at risk for another collapse due to a pandemic?

Deep in the Great Dismal Swamp, thousands of Black people created a hidden free society, one that defied slavery for centuries. This is the story of the rebels who turned a swamp into a sanctuary. This episode of In The Margins is part of PBS' America@250 collection, celebrating the country's 250th anniversary. Democracy is built on participation.