An 18th-century observer in Cuba noted enslaved men in long-term relationships where they referred to each other as "husband," with one partner performing domestic labor typically assigned to women.
The history of same-sex intimacy and romantic storylines among enslaved people is a burgeoning field of study that moves beyond the traditional focus on heteronormative family structures. Scholars are increasingly "queering" the archive, finding evidence of same-sex desire and deep emotional bonds in slave narratives, court records, and colonial observations. Historical Evidence of Romantic Relationships naked gay sex slaves
In the Caribbean, the word "mati" (shipmate) evolved into a term for female lovers, tracing back to erotic bonds formed between women in the sex-segregated holds of slave ships. An 18th-century observer in Cuba noted enslaved men