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José Leonardo Chirino

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Statue of José Leonardo Chirino in Coro.

José Leonardo Chirino (April 25, 1754 – December 10, 1796) was a free zambo who helped to lead a 1795 uprising in Santa Ana de Coro, Venezuela. José Leonardo Chirino Airport is named after him.

1795 rebellion

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1795 was perhaps the most revolutionary year in Caribbean history, with rebellions in Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, Curaçao, Dominica, Guyana, Trinidad, Jamaica, and the unfolding Haitian Revolution.[1]

The Coro rebellion grew out of and contributed to this revolutionary conjuncture, especially under the leadership of Chirino, who had recently traveled to Saint-Domingue and heard news of the rebellion there as well as the more-distant French Revolution, and also the leadership of José Caridad González, a Congolese man who had studied the philosophy, strategy, and tactics of the unfolding French Revolution.[2]

The Coro rebellion had four primary objectives:

  • First, the application of the new legal system of the French Revolution, i.e. the abolition of monarchy and colonialism and the constitution of an independent, democratic republic.
  • Second, the freedom of all enslaved Africans and the abolition of slavery.
  • Third, the abolition of tribute payments that had been imposed upon the colony's indigenous population under Spanish rule.
  • Fourth, the abolition of white supremacy, or privilege and prejudice on the basis of skin color.[3]

Betrayal and execution

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After the rebellion was suppressed, Chirino was betrayed by an associate, captured and condemned to death.[4] His children were sold into slavery.[5] He was executed on December 10, 1796.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "BigDrumNation - The Fedon Rebellion". bigdrumnation.org. Archived from the original on 2020-02-04. Retrieved 2015-05-10.
  2. ^ "NAAM Documents -". documents.naam.cw. Retrieved 2015-05-10.
  3. ^ "eugenegodfried/chirino". afrocubaweb.com. Retrieved 2015-05-10.
  4. ^ Gil Fortoul, José (1930). Historia Constitucional de Venezuela. Editorial Sur America.
  5. ^ Jesús Borges, José Leonardo Chirino, Macanillas, Aristóbulo, Noel Sirit e ilustres visitantes
  6. ^ "ExecutedToday.com » 1796: Jose Leonardo Chirino, Venezuelan slave revolt leader". executedtoday.com. Retrieved 2015-05-10.