AmericasEvent
Rhode Island Passes Law Regarding Slavery
- When
- 1652
- Where
- Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
- Episodes
- 1
In May 1652, the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations enacted a law prohibiting slavery, described as the first such law in America. However, the edict was never enforced, and the colony remained heavily involved in the slave trade during the post-revolution era.
Episodes
Background and detail
Legislative Action. The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations passed an act in 1652 that abolished the holding of slaves. This legislation is identified as the first law prohibiting slavery in America, enacted specifically on May 18, 1652.
People involved
- Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations · Legislative body
Sources
- Rhode Island Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-24
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.