Our old employments by which we have been accustomed to gain a livelihood are gradually slipping from our hands: every hour sees us elbowed out of some employment to make room for some newly arrived emigrant from the Emerald Isle, whose hunger and color entitle him to special favor.
From his autobiography, describing the economic challenges faced by Black Americans due to competition from Irish immigrants.
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It had no interest in recognizing or preserving any of the ties that bind families together or to their homes.
Knowledge unfits a child to be a slave.” I instinctively assented to the proposition, and from that moment I understood the direct pathway from slavery to freedom.
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