Regardless of age, the desire for freedom remained. It is known that older slaves sometimes aided younger slaves to escape. Some of the aged also escaped to freedom. In some instances masters did not pursue older slaves because of their lower economic value. However, this was not always the case, as some older escaped slaves were still valued, and were advertised in the newspapers.
Some owners granted their older slaves freedom as they advanced in years (Reiss, 1997). If they were fortunate, owners gave them a small parcel of land. However, some owners simply wanted to avoid the financial responsibility of providing care to older slaves. The owners did not want to assume responsibility for food, clothing, and housing. Older female house servants were sometimes mistreated or abandoned. It was actually bad for a master to work older slaves to death, as some neighbors and others in the community would respond negatively (Reiss,...
While some slave holders took care of their slaves, this was reserved for a small number who had closer emotional ties to their master due to their tenure as domestic servants in their masters' homes.
Older slaves who migrated to northern cities would sometimes resort to begging to support themselves. It was also known that urban slave holders released their slaves to the streets to beg so they could help earn their support. Beginning in 1787, African-American mutual aid organizations were founded in some northern cities. These organizations provided assistance yet alternative services were not always available, dependable, or sufficient to meet the needs of older poor African-Americans (Reiss, 1997). It is unfortunate that Reiss's (1997) conclusions are accurate, but they seem to be, and there were really few weaknesses to this book. it's main strength is the importance of what it has to say and the kind of…
