In the second part of the essay, Richard Price develops these five points, highlighting contradictions and rejecting an idealization of marronage:
Cultural adaptation and survival: Maroons were equipped with cultural and ecological knowledge from different regions in Africa, aboriginal societies, and “new world” plantations, aiding their physical adaptation to hostile environments.
Maroon societies in conflict: Early maroon societies were communities constantly at war, fighting for survival against colonial armies and, at times, indigenous groups. Their authoritarian and hierarchical leadership style, mistrust of newcomers, and surveillance reflected the state of constant war. Many leaders were chosen because of their skills incorporating Afro and colonial warfare and political skills.
Diverse cultural influences: These societies were culturally diverse, with contributions from recently arrived Africans, long-term enslaved people, and creoles (Afro-descendants born in the Americas), each with their languages, cultures, and adaptations to slavery and colonialism. Some maroon groups reproduced in their settlements the social systems of oppression they initially escaped from, including slavery.
Plantation culture’s influence: Plantation culture’s influence on maroon societies extended beyond the environmental realm, impacting many aspects of their lives and allowing them to adapt African ideas to their colonial circumstances, making their culture uniquely Afro-diasporic.
Afro-American culture: Despite their diversity, the maroons shared a simultaneous commitment to African heritage and a recently developed Afro-American culture that influenced their ideologies, cultural and spiritual practices, and socio-political organizations.
Presentation(s)
San Basilio de Palenque: a contemporary Maroon town in Colombia