On April 4, 1792, the National Assembly declared: “the hommes de couleur and the nègres libres must enjoy, along with the white colons, equality of political rights.” They would be allowed to vote in local elections and be eligible for all positions if they had met the financial criteria for “active” citizenship. The decree was presented as a way of responding to the “the uprising of the slaves”; it noted that the “unity” of citizens was “the only thing that can preserve their property from pillage and fire.”

Dubois, Laurent, Avengers of the New World_ …, loc. 185