Connecticut and Rhode Island Pass Gradual Emancipation Laws

Connecticut and Rhode Island both passed gradual abolition laws in 1784. Connecticut's law freed children born to enslaved mothers after March 1, 1784, at age 25; Rhode Island freed such children at age 18 (males) or 21 (females). Neither freed anyone already enslaved. Rhode Island's law was partly the work of Quaker abolitionists. Both states were still major participants in the transatlantic slave trade, and Rhode Island merchants continued to dominate American slave trading for decades. The laws represented partial, delayed recognition of freedom, not immediate justice.