Mulatto

Mulatto (also Mulato) is a term of Spanish and/or Portuguese origin describing the offspring of African and European ancestry. The forms "mulatto/mulato" are widely used in Spanish and Portuguese. Many Americans of Hispanic and/or Latino origin identify themselves as mulatto; the term is also used in many other countries.

Haiti

In Haiti (formerly Saint-Domingue), a non-Hispanic country of the Caribbean, mulattos represented a smaller proportion of the population than in many hispanic countries. Today they constitute about 5% of the population.

Related Topics:
Haiti - Saint-Domingue

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Historically, Haitian mulattos have been looked down upon by both blacks and whites alike, and used by both when best suited. Blacks regarded them as no better or worse than their unmixed French progenitors. Mulattos made up a class of their own. They were free and usually had a preference for French rather than African culture. Often they were highly educated and wealthy. This is much in contrast to US mulattos which were often grouped together with blacks, and saw themselves as such - although in French-influenced areas of the Southern United States prior to the Civil War, particularly New Orleans, Louisiana, a number of mulattoes were also free and slave-owning3.

Related Topics:
Southern United States - Civil War - New Orleans, Louisiana - 3

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Being part of their time, many Haitian mulattos were also slaveholders and as such actively participated in the oppression of the black majority. However, many also actively fought for the abolition of slavery. Distinguished mulattos such as Nicolas Suard and others were prime examples of mulattoes who devoted their time, energy and financial means to this cause. Some were also members of the Les Amis des Noirs in Paris, a social club that fought for the abolition of slavery.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Nevertheless, many mulattos were slaughtered by black Haitians during the wars of independence in order to secure black political power over the island. Earlier some black volunteers had already aligned themselves with the French against the mulattos during the first and second mulatto rebellion.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In Haiti, mulattos initially possessed legal equality, which provided them with many benefits, including inheritance. In the 18th century, however, Europeans fearful of slave revolts had restricted their rights, but they were successfully reclaimed in 1791.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~