We know of Lafayette's disdain for slavery as early as 1783. In a letter addressed to General George Washington dated February 5, 1783, he shared his desire to do away with slavery. Throughout his life, Lafayette consistently advocated for universal human rights and abolitionism. With the help of his wife Adrienne, he implemented a revolutionary model for a plantation in Cayenne, South America (today's French Guiana) in the mid 1780s to demonstrate the mechanisms by which gradual emancipation could lead to a successful long-term insertion of the newly freedmen and women into a free society. During his Triumphal Return to the U.S. in 1824, Lafayette made several subtle gestures of sympathy toward African Americans, even though public orders often forbade Black men from attending official gatherings organized in honor of "the Nation's Guest". Although Lafayette's early actions were not followed at the time, his example is now a source of inspiration for the nation as the country revisits the legacy of the founding generation and scrutinizes its relationship with slavery. Find out below the key moments in Lafayette's lifetime that defined what is now considered the most forward-thinking abolitionist agenda of the founding generation.