The Unpopular Decree of Emancipation in Sandomang

Haidu Ville implemented new labor codes, requiring cultivators to stay on their plantations for a minimum of three years. This was greeted with angry shock by the black community. It wasn't hard to see that this might be a prelude to re-enslavement, says Frida Ghitis. "We're free citizens now, and we don't want to do it."