Overview
From the time he was young, Benjamin Lay’s heart burned for justice. Only about four feet tall, he knew what it was to be different, and he believed firmly in the equality of all people. The young Quaker was troubled by stories of cruelty and terror on slave ships that he heard about as a sailor. And when he moved to the island of Barbados from England, he quickly saw those ships were only the beginning of the horrors of enslavement. Benjamin began to speak out against enslavement, particularly against other Quakers who owned slaves, which led to him and his wife being forced to leave both Barbados and England.
Settling in Pennsylvania, Benjamin began a campaign to change his community’s mind about enslavement. He protested, he boycotted sugar and tobacco, he called out those who owned slaves, and he wrote books explaining his views, published by his friend Benjamin Franklin. He made many enemies and endured hardships. But slowly, slowly, he changed the hearts of his whole community, convincing American Quakers of the evils of enslavement.
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