Prof. Benedetta Rossi, Professor of History, University College London.
While global histories of abolition frequently focus on Western activists, a vital and distinct history of anti-slavery emerged from within Africa itself. Professor Benedetta Rossi, a scholar of African history and emancipation at University College London, will guide us through this crucial, overlooked narrative. Her extensive research tracks how African societies, thinkers, and enslaved individuals actively resisted, adapted, and dismantled systems of bondage from the pre-colonial era into the 20th century. This lecture will broaden our understanding of human rights history, highlighting the diverse, internal dynamics of freedom movements across the African continent.