Emiliano Mundrucu’s class action in 1832 is regarded as one of the oldest legal battles in the United States aimed at challenging racial segregation. The captain of the ship denied his wife, Harriet, and their one-year-old daughter access to a ladies’ cabin despite the fact that the wife was ill. The remarkable story of an Afro-Brazilian who sued a White Captain in 1832 for denying his family access to a cabin reserved for whites only.
The couple had purchased one of the most expensive tickets to board the Telegraph, which was sailing from Massachusetts to Nantucket Island in the United States.
Mundrucu’s claim of racial segregation was that though he had paid to board the business class of the boat, the captain had denied him access to services on the basis of the color of his skin, according to the BBC.
Mundrucu sued Captain Edward Barker for breach of contract, which drew international attention to the case. In October 1833, the court awarded Mundrucu $125 in damages after the jury determined that the captain had breached his contract with the couple. A year later, the Captain convinced the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to overturn the decision. According to the court, the couple were not guaranteed the best seat on the ship simply because they purchased an expensive ticket.
South African historian Lloyd Belton, who has conducted extensive research on class action, stated that even though slavery was abolished in the United States, segregation was still prevalent in many sectors of society. So, even though Harriet was ill and tried to use the ladies’ cabin with her daughter because it was cold outside, the captain told them it was only for white women.
Harriet was asked to use the cabin where women and men slept on a wet floor on mattresses, which was unhealthy for her condition during the period. This opposition to this rule by the couple led to the landmark case that changed the face of racial segregation in the United States.
Mundrucu is a Brazilian revolutionary who fled to Boston after being sentenced to death in 1824 for his role in establishing a republic in northeastern Brazil. Mundrucu’s history as a revolutionary, according to the South African historian, may explain why a Black Brazilian immigrant will challenge the system at the height of racial segregation in the United States. He described the couple’s decision to make a case against racial segregation as a risk because Mundrucu was unknown in America at the time.
Some historians said it might have stemmed from his military background given that he fought in Haiti and Gran Colombia. But for Llyold, Mundrucu hailed from a system where immigrants had a lot of rights and fewer restrictions compared to African Americans. He said the couple’s action may have been pre-planned to achieve a certain goal targeted at racial segregation.
He went on to say that Mundrucu most likely purchased a ticket that gave him access to the best seats on the boat, which he knew would not be available to African Americans at the time, in order to expose the flaws in the system.
Following the landmark case, the steamboat’s managers changed their policy that prohibited African Americans from purchasing expensive tickets to board the Telegraph.