One of the most interesting facets of Schwartz’s article on slave resistance in Bahia is his treatment of the ambivalences between various Indian and Black communities. Although he notes instances of cooperation between these two groups – Indians often joined quilombos and similarly, Blacks were incorporated into Indian tribes– he also highlights the ways in which colonial powers mobilized both Indian and Black mercenaries to capture fugitive slaves and to disband maroon settlements.

To that end, the relationship between indigenous groups and enslaved Africans provides a gateway into understanding the ambivalences of women’s multifaceted role in maroon settlements. Since most maroon groups were characterized by an extreme imbalance between the number of males and females, many groups raided neighboring plantations in search of black…