Jack Salzman, Cornel West Struggles in the Promised

236 // EARL LEWIS
sincerity of his love for "Mulatta Rose" and their children. His will legalized their
freedom and left them land, thirteen slaves, and other assets. It also established
the avenue for his son James to ease into the white world, marry a white woman,
and assume the privileges of race and station. 18
More typically we understand the antebellum period as a time of absolute
male prerogative. For Black women, male prerogative often gave way to male
power and sexual abuse. In slave narratives, court proceedings, and oral interviews
women recounted the horrors of rape and abuse. The law did little to protect their
virtue and Black members of slave societies were often defenseless to prevent such
crimes. Slavery registered most Black women as property; as property, they had
no rights in person other than their own will to fight back and resist. 19
Into the world of interracial relationships entered Isaac and Jacob Nunes
Cardozo, the father (or fathers) of Henry, Francis, and Thomas Cardozo, important
figures in reconstruction politics and affairs. Scholars disagree over which of the
brothers entered the world of interracial love and fatherhood—perhaps both did.
Early works claimed it was Jacob whereas more recent works follow the claims of
family members that Isaac fathered this branch of the Cardozo family. Neither
man married, although by the standards of the day they were quite desirable
mates. Jacob became the more noted, serving as editor and owner of both the
Southern "Patriot (1821-45) and the Charleston Evening News (1845-47). He officially
supported slavery even while denying this option for himself; he published two
books on political economy and actively opposed the split of the Union. Isaac,
meanwhile, lived a more circumscribed life. Aside from his activities on behalf of
reforming Judaism, he seemingly shied away from the public stage. 20
Insofar as reconciling the patrimony of Jacob or Isaac is beyond the scope of
this essay, we surrender to contemporary scholarship: Isaac rather than Jacob
fathered the three Cardozo sons. 21 More troubling, the historical record remains
virtually silent on the particulars of his love. All we know is that Isaac met and
fell in love with a mixed African and Native American free woman, frequently
identified as Lydia Williams. Cross-racial relationships existed in antebellum
South Carolina, and especially antebellum Charleston. Such relationships crossed
the divide of class, religion, and nationality and include some of the most prominent
names in America, among them Grimke. In 1860, census enumerators even
counted seventy-one South Carolina households consisting of free people of color
and whites. 22
In this regard little separated Jews and Gentiles: men of both groups transgressed
the boundaries of race and entered long-term relationships with Black
women. Aside from the general descriptions of her status and parentage, none of
the standard biographies provides further detail about Isaac Cardozo's paramour.
Like many Black women, her deeds and actions were shrouded by the important
accomplishments of the men in her life—first her partner and later her sons. Isaac
gained prominence as a religious reformer. Her biracial sons, Henry, Francis, and
Thomas, acquired considerable stature and distinction after the Civil War. Henry,