Travel in Time with Dan: Fictional Interview with Sengbe Pieh (Cinque), Leader of the Amistad Rebellion (1839–1841)
Dan: Hello everyone! Today, I’m in Farmington, Connecticut, at the Riverside Cemetery—in a town proudly known as the Village of Amistad. I’m honored to “sit down” with Sengbe Pieh, known to many as Cinque, who led the courageous rebellion aboard the ship Amistad in 1839. Welcome, Mr. Pieh.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Thank you, Dan. It is important to remember what happened to my people, to the Mende, and how this community opened their hearts to us.
Dan: Let’s start with that terrible journey. Can you tell me what happened?
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): We were kidnapped from our homes in West Africa and forced into slavery in Cuba. Then they put us on the Amistad to transport us to a plantation. We were not slaves—we were free people stolen from our families. I had a wife, children. One night, I found a nail. I freed myself and the others. We took back the ship. The captain and some crew died in the fight. We forced the remaining crew to sail us back to Africa.
Dan: But the journey didn’t go as planned.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): No. During the day, we could see the sun and knew which direction was home. But at night, we did not know how to navigate by the stars. The slave traders deceived us—they turned the ship around each night, sailing back toward America. This went on for months. We were caught between freedom and captivity, never knowing if we would see our homeland again.
Dan: Eventually, the U.S. Navy intercepted the ship.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Yes. They towed us to Long Island and arrested all of us. We were prisoners again, but this time in a strange land where we could not speak the language or understand the laws. We did not know if we would be executed or returned to slavery.
Dan: The trial became one of the most important legal cases of the century. What was that experience like?
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Confusing, frightening, and yet… hopeful. Connecticut had two capitals then—New Haven and Hartford—and we went back and forth between them. In Hartford, the court acquitted us of murder. They said we were simply trying to regain our freedom, and anyone would fight for that. Then the property charges—they argued we were property, not people. But the court ruled we were never slaves to begin with. We were kidnapped. We were free men who had been stolen.
Dan: Former President John Quincy Adams argued your case before the Supreme Court.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Yes, and he won. We were declared not guilty and free to return home. But freedom without means is incomplete. We had no money for passage back to Africa. The United States would not pay. We were free, but stranded.
Dan: That’s when Farmington stepped in.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Yes. Farmington—the Village of Amistad—they opened their doors to us. The abolitionists, the community members, the First Church of Christ—they all helped. They gave us homes, jobs, put us in their schools. The young women stayed at what would become Miss Porter’s School. They treated us with dignity, as human beings, as equals.
Dan: You and the other Mende people also worked to raise money for your return.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): We did. Some of us learned English. We traveled and spoke to people, telling our story, raising funds. It took about eight months of fundraising after eighteen months of trials. The community supported us, and we worked together toward the same goal: going home.
Dan: But not everyone made it home. Your friend Foone is buried here in this cemetery.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Yes. Foone drowned in the river behind us, near where the old canal ran. He never got to return to his family, to his people. He rests here in Farmington soil. It is a sorrow I carry. He fought for freedom, survived the ship, survived the trials, but never reached home. This cemetery holds his memory.
Dan: After all you experienced, what lessons do you think leaders today should learn?
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Two things, Dan. First, moral leadership—doing what is right, even when it is difficult. The court system here recognized that kidnapping us was wrong, that we deserved freedom. That took courage. Second, community leadership. Farmington showed what a community can do when people come together with purpose and compassion. They could have turned away. Instead, they embraced us, fed us, educated us, and helped us achieve our goal of returning home.
Dan: Those are powerful lessons. What do you want people to remember about the Amistad story?
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): Remember that every person deserves freedom and dignity. Remember that one person taking action can change everything—I found a nail and freed my people. Remember that communities have power when they unite for justice. And remember that the fight for freedom is never easy, but it is always worth it. Even when the journey is long, even when we lose people like Foone along the way, we must keep fighting for what is right.
Dan: Thank you so much, Sengbe Pieh. Your courage and your story continue to inspire.
Sengbe Pieh (Cinque): May you always stand for justice and freedom, Dan. That is the greatest leadership of all.
