Magdalena Coline: A Life Beyond Slavery

Although the concept of slavery has existed, to some extent, throughout recorded history, the institution took on new dimensions in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, when it was transplanted to the Americas. Slavery in the United States of America marked the first time, slavery became institutionalized as an immutable condition of race, slaves were reduced to mere property, with no inherent rights at all, and with no chance of emancipation.   In medieval Europe, whether or not someone could be considered a slave was far more nuanced than commonly thought.   In his new book, Magdalena Coline: A Life Beyond Mediterranean Slavery, Harvard University historian Daniel Smail digs deep into the peculiar history of a captured Berber woman living in Marseille in the 1300s who successfully sued her former slaveowner in court.  Daniel Smail joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on February 9, 2026.

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