Unenslaved African Americans in the North were not free since the little economic freedom they possessed was given to them by white Northerners as a means of manipulation. In the North, black people were denied the same opportunities and treatment as white people and viewed as being subhuman. Despite being oppressed by white people, African Americans were only treated equally when it would be beneficial for white people. This can be seen in Charles Mackay’s, Life Liberty in America: or Sketches of a Tour in the United States and Canada in 1857-1858, which describes how free African Americans were subject to abominable treatment from white people who refused to interact with the inferior black community. And yet, while African Americans were forbidden from partaking in the many activities of white people, they were still required to pay taxes alongside their white peers. The fact that African Americans were neglected by the white community and then exploited for the benefit of the white community is beyond appalling. The