Ackermann to Bolster

W. Jeffrey Bolster,
Although the fundamental mark of race in America has been skin color, the history of race as a form of perception shows that the mark of race can be almost anything. In America as the sexual exploitation of slave women by their masters produced a mixed "mulatto" population, the old norms of identifying race by skin color often became impossible. Instead race identificaiton drifted away from skin color to personality characteristics and genetic claims. I believe that you significantly oversimplify your analysis of the discussion of 'black sailors.' While color indicated a likelihood of servitude, it was not guarantee of slavery. Ship owners were notorious for giving jobs to runaway slaves without asking questions about their background. The boats became an extraordinary mix of black and white free people, indentured servants and slaves (both working legitimately for their masters or runaways). Taken together, identificaiton of sailers as whites or blacks and as free or slaves was impossible. As described in your article by Frederick Douglass, sailors had an 'old salt' way of talking. Compared to the rest of segregated America, sailors were remarkably integrated. The shady markers of black/white at sea quickly and easily gave way to sailor/non-sailor. The American social norms of race was lost in the open ocean where the true identities of people were unknown and unimportant. I believe this forged somewhat of a unity of experience between sailors that would make it impossible to discuss the experiences of 'black sailors' from 'white sailors.'

-Robert John Ackermann (From the "Reading the Runaways" reading)

Questions:
The article Reading The Runaways makes a big deal about the 4 attributes that were described in runaway slave advertisements "clothing, trades, linguistic ability and ethnic identity." The point was to show that slaves were often characterized by things other than their skin tone. The article makes it appear that often slaves could pass as free men. Yet I wonder whether this was that widespread? I seem to remember that I learned growing up that the Northern railroad ended in Canada. How easily could a black person pass as white? What did those slaves do when they couldn't pass as white?