Rev. Theodore S. Wright was a black man born to free parents in Providence, Rhode Island in 1797. By the 1930’s he played a big part in the Underground Railroad in addition to his role as a reverend and abolitionist. For the assignment, I read “Prejudice against the Colored Man,” which I will discuss further in detail. “Prejudice against the Colored Man” was a speech he delivered at the New York State Anti-Slavery Society convention in response to the following resolution "nefarious and wicked and should be practically reprobated and discountenanced" (“Black.past.org, 2015).
Wright’s speech intended to support the resolution begins with acknowledging the President, whom the speech is intended to be directed at. He begins by acknowledging that no one could truly appreciate the importance of the resolution more than the individual who has experienced slavery. The focus of the speech was to express how difficult it was to even be a free black man because of the prejudice that existed. The attitudes of the white people towards any colored individual made them feel inferior and hopeless. Wright provides ample evidence of the behaviors and prejudiced treatment that is even practiced within the house of God- the church. No matter where a colored man goes he carries with him a sense of being less worthy than the white man.
In conclusion, the speech emphasizes how the prejudice that exists in relation to being black is almost worst that the cruel treatment received by slaves. The loss of one’s sense of opportunity in life was even extended into the religious sphere. Wright addresses the problems of racial prejudice that exist in conjunctions with slavery, even for the free black man.
Works Cited
Theodore S. Wright, (1837) Theodore S. Wright, "Prejudice Against the Colored Man" | The
Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed. Web. 21 Jan. 2016.
<http://www.blackpast.org/1837-theodore-s-wright-prejudice-against-colored-man>.
