New Directions in the Study of Unfree American Indian Labor: Geography, Law, and Methodology

Although African slavery is enshrined in American historiography as the preeminent form of bondage, lesser-studied instances of unfreedom can shed light into the harsh realities of lived experiences. American Indians, African Americans, and Europeans each played various, and untypical, roles in systems of unfreedom. In particular, American Indian involvement in systems of enslavement and unfree labor took innumerable forms. Native Americans were not only victims, but also agents and intermediaries of the slave trade. As such, the typical black and white, and unfree and free dualities cease to be effective means of evaluation. Moreover, unfreedom is not only bound to chattel slavery. Several other categorizations of unfreedom—including debt peonage, indenture, hostage taking, and kinship based captivity—illustrate the varying forms it took. This essay addresses a form of servitude that has frequently been overlooked in United States history—the role of American Indians in systems of unfreedom—and provides a framework for thinking about its complex forms from Alaska to New England, and beyond.