1772, April 6 New York City became a flashpoint in the conflict between white colonist and the Africans they enslaved. Slaves continually attempted to run away, some successfully, and whites existed in a constant state of paranoia about slave conspiracies. In the midnight hours of April 6, 1772, an estimated 23 slaves confirmed the colonist worst fears. They lit an outhouse on fire, hid themselves and when townspeople came to extinguish the blaze, attacked. They killed somewhere between five and nine whites before being subdued. The relatively minor plot upset the whole British colonies for decades. Both Massachusetts and Pennsylvania eventually limited or banned the importation of slaves for fear of being overrun like New York City p.19

1773, April 20 four slaves in Thompson, Massachusetts signed and distributed an open letter to the town's delegate to the state legislature. The letter asked that slaves be granted one day of freedom per week so that they could earn wages and ultimately buy their freedom from their owners. p. 61 The African American Archive: the History of the Black Experience through Documents edited by Kai Wright (New York City: Black Dog & Leventhal, 2001)