Arkansas city honors enslaved man who fled to Canada and was later extradited

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — An enslaved man who fled Arkansas in 1841 seeking freedom in Canada, only to be forcibly returned to the U.S., has been honored with a historical marker and a new street sign in the city where he once labored. The unprecedented extradition of Nelson Hackett from Canada on a theft charge sparked an uproar in the British colony, which had long been viewed as a safe haven for escaped slaves. According to researchers, the British government later enacted policies that “made similar extraditions extremely difficult.” Canada never sent another fugitive from slavery back to the U.S. The Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that a marker honoring Hackett and his impact was installed Friday in Fayetteville’s downtown square.