What assumptions about American society were expressed in the American Coloniza tion Society?
The American Colonization Society, founded in 1816 to assist
free black people in emigrating to Africa, was the brainchild of
the Reverend Robert Finley, a Presbyterian minister from Basking
Ridge, New Jersey. Finley believed that blacks would never be fully
integrated into American society and that they would only be able
to fulfill their potential as human beings in Africa, the "land of
their fathers." He saw colonization as a charitable work, one that
would benefit American blacks and Africans alike through the
spreading of Christianity to Africa. He also thought that it would
prompt a gradual end to slavery.
In keeping with the popular thought of the day, Finley saw the
presence of blacks in America as a threat to the national
well-being and the quality of life for whites. He said that free
blacks were "unfavorable to our industry and morals" and that
removing them would save Americans from difficulties such as
interracial marriage and having to provide for poor blacks.