Wp/gpe/Belinda Sutton

Belinda Royall

human

Sex or gender	female
Country of citizenship	Ghana
Given name	Belinda
Family name	Royall
Date of birth	1712, 1713
Place of birth	Ghana
Date of death	1790
Languages spoken, written or signed	English
Occupation	writer
Work location	Massachusetts
Ethnic group	African Americans

Belinda Sutton (dem born am 1713 for West Africa), alias Belinda Royall, na she be Ghanaian-born woman wey dem enslave am by de Royall family for Isaac Royall House wey dey Medford, Massachusetts, USA. IIsaac Royall Jr., abandon am as na he fly go Nova Scotia for de beginning of de American Revolution.

Sutton present petition give Massachusetts General Court wey na he dey request pension from de proceeds of ein enslaver's estate for February 1783 insyd. Secof dis result of petition, dem award am annual pension of fifteen pounds den twelve shillings. Dem cite dis pension as one of de first cases of reparation for slavery den slave trade insyd.

Subsequent petitions to de Commonwealth of Massachusetts dey show say after two initial payments, na de pension payments no be forthcoming. She continue petition for de back payments till final filing for 1793 insyd.

For ein 1980 poem insyd "Belinda's Petition," Rita Dove dey give voice to woman wey dem first enslave at age 12: "Lately your Countrymen have severed / de Binds of Tyranny," she says, wey she add simply, "I would hope you / would consider de Same for me."

External links

• Belinda's Petition: Massachusetts Anti-Slavery and Anti-Segregation Petitions; Massachusetts Archives Collection. v.239-Revolution Resolves, 1783. SC1/series 45X. Massachusetts Archives. Boston, Mass.. Collection Development Department. Widener Library. HCL. Harvard University. Accessed 17 February 2023.

• The Petition of Belinda Sutton (previously known as Belinda Royall), dem transcribe
• Singleton, Kyera (14 February 2022). "Webinar: Challenging Assumptions in Telling Underrepresented History" (video). youtube.com. Massachusetts Historical Society.
• Allibhai, Aabid (3 November 2022), "Belinda Sutton's World: Slavery, Legal Activism, and Abolition in Revolutionary New England" (video). youtube.com. Massachusetts Historical Society.
• Jones, Martha S. (17 November 2022). "Belinda Sutton Distinguished Lecture: What's So Hard About Hard Histories?" (video). youtube.com. Harvard Law School.