Worthy of Freedom

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The book explores the evolution of indenture from its controversial inception to its acceptance in the British Empire by the 1860s. Initially seen as a revival of slavery, changing economic conditions reshaped its perception into a form of free labor, purportedly upholding abolition's ideals. Connolly examines the state-sponsored migration of Indian laborers to sugar plantations, revealing how legal and public debates transformed the concepts of free and unfree labor to benefit capital and empire, ultimately redefining "freedom" in the post-abolition context.