Peter Kiteridge Slavery

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Slavery and inequality was once a huge dilemma here in the United States of America. In a well written letter, Peter Kiteridge, a former slave who fought in the American Revolutionary war, recounts his background with the intention for the town officials of Newfield Massachusetts to read. He describes the different journeys that he went on and everything he did to better the country. At 58 years old he finally decides to proclaim the benefits he deserves due to the fact that he once served for US Army. Many individual African Americans played important roles in the revolutionary struggles. Kiteridge wrote the letter on April 6, 1806, this suggests that he wrote it a couple years after slavery had been abolished in Massachusetts by it’s…show more content…
After his term was finally over he went on to working as a sailor for two years, after that he became a day laborer and worked for seven years. Then he finally he moved to the place where he now lives, “I now live and have until this time by my labor assisted by the kindness of the neighborhood inhabitants been enabled to support myself and family”, this quote conveys the fact that Peter’s loss of a hand was a result of him not being able to work for himself and his family, he became disabled but thanks to the kindness of his neighbors his family had managed to survived. That didn’t go for a long time though, he states, “Arrived at the fifty eight years of my life and afflicted with an unusual arm as I apprehend with incurable diseases where by the labor of my hands is wholly cut off”, arguing that the loss of his hand has affected him significantly due to the fact that he wasn’t capable of working, he is 58 years old with no compensation available for his injuries and wants assistance to help support his wife and four children. He analyses that out of the four children that he has, three of them ate too young to support themselves therefore he is really asking for support,” The time of their mother is wholly occupied in taking care of myself & my little ones”, this suggests that they lived in the time when certain cultures thought that the only responsibility women had was to take care of their children and husband, working wasn’t even an option like it is now. The family is desperately in need, Peter was set free after he completed his term as a soldier but he had not received any type of compensation to thank him for what he once did, “ thus gentlemen in this my extremity I am induced to call on you for assistance”, he is seeking for help. Finally he ends the letter by telling them to not look at him as someone they

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