Porter Broyles

“In fact, the Southern District of New York became—in the eyes of activists like Ruggles—synonymous with the interests of southern slaveholders.”
― Jonathan Daniel Wells, The Kidnapping Club: Wall Street, Slavery, and Resistance on the Eve of the Civil War

“A court hearing held in the city of Monterey in 1820 illustrates what was required of escaped slaves hoping to stay in Mexico. To be emancipated and allowed to become immigrants, they had to demonstrate good character and convince a judge or audiencia that they had suffered intolerable cruelty at the hands of their masters. The Monterey hearing dealt with five emancipated African Americans who were given asylum in Texas but were later charged with being part of a band of thieves and stealing a horse. If found guilty, they were to be extradited to the United States.”
― Martha Menchaca, The Mexican American Experience in Texas: Citizenship, Segregation, and the Struggle for Equality

“Wells argued that, in fact, jury trials in fugitive cases were unconstitutional because they placed a barrier between a slaveholder and his slave property.”
― Jonathan Daniel Wells, The Kidnapping Club: Wall Street, Slavery, and Resistance on the Eve of the Civil War

“Wright rose to the challenge and defended himself and Ruggles against Morse’s attacks. In what would later be termed the “higher law” argument that justice and morality superseded the Constitution’s compromise over the return of runaways, Wright maintained that he would continue to call out Boudinot and other members of the New York Kidnapping Club. With God and Christian faith on his side, Wright declared, he would continue to speak out against the kidnapping of free Blacks as well as the return of runaways. “It was enough for me,” Wright responded to Morse, “to know that in the City of New York men, women and children had been arrested and thrown into miserable dungeons, for no offense—but merely because they were claimed as PROPERTY.” Wright reminded Morse and other conservatives that neither the Constitution nor Wall Street’s business ties with southern cotton would trump the immorality of slavery and kidnapping.”
― Jonathan Daniel Wells, The Kidnapping Club: Wall Street, Slavery, and Resistance on the Eve of the Civil War