2023 Lecture Series, “Beyond Slavery’s Shadow: Free People of Color in the South”

Join the Frontier Culture Museum on Tuesday, March 21, 2023 for the next installment of the 2023 Lecture Series. The lecture starts at 6:00 PM and is free and open to the public. March’s lecture is titled “Beyond Slavery’s Shadow: Free People of Color in the South.”

Warren Eugene Milteer, Jr.’s presentation will focus on his recently published research about free people of color in the South. Milteer’s presentation will highlight the ways the experiences of free people of color changed over time and will explore several important individuals who appear in his work.

In his book, Beyond Slavery’s Shadow: Free People of Color in the South, Milteer draws from a wide array of sources to demonstrate that from the colonial period through the Civil War, the growing influence of white supremacy and proslavery extremism created serious challenges for free persons categorized as “negroes,” “mulattoes,” “mustees,” “Indians,” or simply “free people of color” in the South. Segregation, exclusion, disfranchisement, and discriminatory punishment were ingrained in their collective experiences. Nevertheless, in the face of attempts to deny them the most basic privileges and rights, free people of color defended their families and established organizations and businesses.