Welcome to Stolen Relations

Please note: the headings and terms in this database are largely derived from archival documents, which often contain terms, phrases, and biases that reduce, minimize, or alter Native identities and views of the world.

As part of our commitment to decolonize and recontextualize these sources, please consult the additional information displayed at right or via the info-circle icon to better interpret and understand the headings and terms given in the primary sources.

A brief introduction and update (2017)

October 6, 2017

A brief introduction and update (2017)

Linford Fisher

Greetings, and thanks for visiting this site. The idea for a database that centralizes all known biographical information about known instances of indigenous slavery in the Americas has been percolating for some time. In 2015 I began to slowly apply for small amounts of funding internally here at Brown to take the first steps towards amassing data and building a website. I’m grateful that the Center for Digital Scholarship here at Brown has been willing to generously help out in terms of computer programming and tech support. We have applied for significant outside funding both internally and externally and hope to be able to make more concrete headway soon.

At the moment, we do have a core database and a back-end interface for us to enter data. Although there is not yet a front-facing portal to the database, we are hoping to have a prototype of that by early 2018, especially if funding comes through.

In the meantime, I’d welcome any and all submissions to the project! If you have any instances of indigenous slavery anywhere in the Americas, in any linguistic context, please contact me! We have researchers who can enter this information into the database.