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Abstract
Emancipation in Cuba was a long multi-year, multi-phase, and complex process. Scholars often credit the work of European and white abolitionists in the United States for working towards Cuban emancipation. However, little attention is given to the roles of free African Americans in the endeavor, although primary sources abound exhibiting black contributions to Cuban emancipation between the years of 1853-1889. From ordinary to extraordinary, African Americans from all walks of life advocated for freedom for their brethren of “the Forever Faithful Island.” Well-known abolitionists, such as Henry Highland Garnet, Frederick Douglass, and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper used their means, reputations, and spheres of influence to advance the cause. Moreover, it was a cause that ordinary African Americans supported through the Free-Produce and Emigration to Haiti Movements. This essay explores the work of Americans of African descent to exhibit their faithfulness to help gain freedom for the enslaved in Cuban.