On 10 March 1742, Jacobus Capitein defended his book Dissertatio politico-theologica de servitute, libertati christianæ non contraria in the Academy Building. The alert among us will know that Capitein, who had been kidnapped by the Dutch from the Gold Coast (present-day Ghana) as a young boy, argued in his work that slavery was not contrary to Christian freedom. This sealed Capitein's fate: as a former slave, he had become a tool in the hands of those who supported slavery. His life ended tragically. He died in 1747 at the age of 30 near Fort Elmina in what is now Ghana. Leiden University does not have a spotless reputation, and the dark stains of the past help to refine our understanding and encourage reflection.
