Anti-Slavery Movements in British North America and the Transnational life of “Obedient Servant” Samuel Ringgold Ward

Abstract

This paper argues that the writings of abolitionist Samuel Ringgold Ward and other anti-slavery groups were indicative of a larger trend of African Americans becoming influenced by Moral Colonialism. This colonialism was based on the belief that British colonizers were civilizing and therefore saving non-white populations, through measures such as appointing “protectors” to prevent non-white people from being taken into slavery and other forms of exploitation. In these writings, there are many descriptions given to the British Empire, describing it as a “glorious nation” and other similar labels, which argued that the British Empire was the most progressive power.  Samuel Ringgold Ward lived a mobile life in America, Canada, Switzerland, Britain, and Jamaica, so this paper will use a transnational approach, showing the connections British North America had to other colonies in the British Empire, while also demonstrating the many influences on the views of Ward and other African Americans.