Presented by Stages of Freedom.

In celebration of the 250th, we illuminate and honor Rhode Island’s Patriots of Color who fought to secure our and their freedom. 

Ray Rickman and Robb Dimmick, co-founders of the award-winning Black nonprofit Stages of Freedom, explore the pivotal and often overlooked role of Rhode Island African Americans in the Revolutionary War. Through the stories of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment and Aaron Briggs, they reveal how Black Patriots and Black Loyalists alike shaped the Revolution while exposing the profound contradiction between the ideals of liberty and the reality of slavery.