The American Prejudice Against Color: An Authentic Narrative, Showing How Easily the Nation Got into an Uproar

In Short

This narrative documents the life and forced exile of a Black professor, William G. Allen, after his engagement to a white woman triggered a violent community uprising in New York state during the 1850s. Through a mix of personal memoir and social critique, the author exposes the hypocrisy of Northern "free" society, which mirrored Southern prejudices in its treatment of interracial unions. Written as an appeal to British supporters, the work serves as both a testament to personal resilience and a searing indictment of the systemic, state-sanctioned racism that permeated mid-19th-century America.

The Story

The story begins in the intellectual circles of New York Central College, an experimental institution where William G. Allen, a Black man of talent and education, serves as a professor. His life is defined by a commitment to equality and the hope that merit can transcend the limitations of caste. However, these aspirations are shattered when he enters into a courtship with Mary E. King, a former student and daughter of a clergyman in the town of Fulton. Their love, seen as a direct challenge to the social order, transforms the quiet village into a volatile theater of hatred.

Rumors of their engagement reach the community, and the reaction is instantaneous. "Respectable" citizens, grog-shop patrons, and even family members coalesce into an armed, vengeful mob. Armed with tar, feathers, and spiked barrels, the mob waits for Allen to arrive by train, intent on delivering a lethal warning. Alerted to the danger, Allen and his allies attempt to navigate the rising tide of hostility, but they are soon trapped by a community that perceives their union as an "unpardonable sin." The mob’s goal is not merely to intimidate, but to destroy.

As the physical threat escalates, the narrative shifts to the psychological and social imprisonment of Mary. Her relatives and neighbors subject her to an intense, suffocating surveillance, confiscating her letters and demanding she abandon her convictions. The press turns the incident into a national spectacle, fabricating details about the couple’s appearance and intentions to stir up public vitriol. While local courts and institutions look the other way—or actively support the "just indignation" of the mob—the couple realizes that their existence in the United States has become untenable.

Realizing they cannot hope for justice in a nation where even the legal system protects the mob, Allen and Mary coordinate a secret reunion. They meet in New York City, marry, and immediately flee to Boston, eventually securing passage to England. The final portion of the book focuses on their life in exile. Far from being silenced, Allen reframes his story as a lecture tour across the United Kingdom. He finds an audience among British abolitionists who regard his intellect and eloquence with the respect denied to him in his homeland. The narrative concludes with testimonials from his British hosts, framing his journey as a transition from the "darkness" of American prejudice to the relative sanctuary of a society willing to judge him by his character rather than his skin.

How It Unfolds

The target is identified After a visit to Fulton, rumors of an interracial marriage ignite a village-wide frenzy. A friendly informant warns the couple that the town is in arms and that a mob is preparing to kill them to preserve the "propriety" of the race line.

The onslaught begins The mob descends upon the home where the couple is staying, demanding blood and declaring that the proposed marriage is a moral outrage. The author describes the terrifying atmosphere as he prepares for death, only to be confronted by a committee of local men who issue a chilling ultimatum: leave or be killed.

The trap closes For the following weeks, Mary is held under virtual house arrest by her family and community. Her every movement is monitored, and the telegraph is used to spread the news of the "horrid marriage," turning the couple into pariahs throughout the region.

The escape and triumph The couple eventually outmaneuvers their captors by meeting in secret to marry. They flee to England, transforming their forced departure into a successful public campaign against American hypocrisy.

The People

William G. Allen is the central figure, a man of intellect and dignity who seeks to live as an equal in a society that refuses to acknowledge his humanity. He is propelled by a quiet, determined faith and a belief in the power of education to break down the walls of racial prejudice.

Mary E. King is the woman whose love for Allen defies the crushing expectations of her family and community. Despite being subjected to "dark days" of isolation and psychological manipulation, she remains steadfast. Her refusal to be "crushed" by her relatives marks her as a figure of quiet, iron-willed defiance.

The Mob of Fulton functions as a collective antagonist, representing the "respectable" citizens who hide their malice behind a mask of moral indignation. They are driven by an irrational fear of "amalgamation" and a desire to enforce social hierarchy through violence.

Gerrit Smith, the abolitionist and statesman, stands as a foil to the mob. He acts as an early benefactor to Allen, representing the small, noble segment of American society that upholds the principles of human equality and remains a constant, supportive presence throughout the author’s life.

In Its Own Voice

"This bondage is, in many of its aspects, far more dreadful than that of the bona fide Southern Slavery, since its victims--many of them having emerged out of, and some of them never having been into, the darkness of personal slavery--have acquired a development of mind, heart, and character, not at all inferior to the foremost of their oppressors."

The author argues that Northern racial prejudice is uniquely cruel because it targets those who have already achieved intellectual and moral self-sufficiency.

"They may mob me; yea, they may kill me; but they shall never crush me."

In a letter written to the author while she was under house arrest, Mary expresses her absolute refusal to yield her personal agency to the demands of her community.

What It's Really About

The book is a profound meditation on the "American prejudice against color," arguing that this bigotry is not a regional aberration but a national pathology. It explores the tension between the country’s professed ideals of liberty and the reality of a society that views interracial marriage as a foundational threat to the state. Allen examines how slavery’s influence extended well beyond the South, warping the morals and manners of Northern communities. Beneath the narrative lies the question of whether a nation that defines itself by exclusion can ever truly achieve the "human equality" it claims to value. The author posits that as long as slavery exists, prejudice will remain the "disturbing force" that ruins the character of both the master and the free.

Why Read It Today

This is a challenging, necessary, and deeply human document. Readers today will find it to be a raw, unfiltered look at the mid-19th-century American psyche, filled with the specific, often brutal language of the period’s racial conflicts. It is not an easy read; the prose is formal and at times dense, and the author’s account of his trauma is stark. However, the book resonates as a powerful case study in how social hysteria is manufactured and how it is weaponized against the individual.

You will likely be struck by the chilling parallels between the author's descriptions of community policing and modern debates over social and racial boundaries. The "mob" here is not just a group of people with clubs, but a system of neighbors, editors, and religious leaders who validate one another’s worst instincts. It feels like a precursor to modern accounts of systemic exclusion, making it particularly relevant to those interested in the history of civil rights and the long, slow struggle for the freedom to love without boundaries. What stays with you is the haunting realization that the "brightening up" of the author’s life could only occur once he escaped the country, highlighting the grim reality that, for many in that era, the only true liberty was to be found across an ocean.