At his trial Cuffay complained that the British press had campaigned to destroy his reputation.
"The next reason that I ought not to be sentenced is on account of the great prejudice that has been raised against me in particular, for months past. Everybody that hears me is convinced that almost the whole press of this country, and even other countries, has been raising a prejudice against me. I have been taunted by the press, and it has tried to smother me with ridicule, and it has done everything in its power to crush me."
The song below is a good example of the taunts he spoke about.
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Berrow's Worcester Journal, Thursday, May 04, 1848; Issue 7588