Gens de couleur

Gens de couleur means "people of color" in French. It refers to people in French-speaking colonies, such as Haiti and Martinique, who were of mixed-race, including African and European ancestries.

These people were often born from relationships between European slave owners and enslaved African women or free women of color. As a result, they had a different social and economic status than those who were purely African or purely European.

Gens de couleur were often more privileged than enslaved Africans as they had some access to education and property rights. However, they still faced discrimination and limited opportunities compared to their European counterparts. They were also viewed as a challenge to the strict racial hierarchy in colonial societies.

In Haiti, the gens de couleur played a significant role in the Haitian Revolution, which eventually led to the country's independence from France. Many gens de couleur aligned themselves with enslaved Africans and fought for their liberation. However, after Haiti gained independence, the new government favored pure African ancestry and gens de couleur faced further discrimination.

Overall, the term gens de couleur refers to people of mixed-race heritage in French-speaking colonies and highlights the complexities of racial identity and social status in these societies.