What are the motifs in Slave Ship by Amiri Baraka?

Assimilation is a recurring idea in the play. Baraka's play, which embodies the cultural and political values of black nationalism, is vehemently anti-assimilationist. The harshest criticism within the play is reserved for the African Americans who represent "Uncle Tomism"—dancing and singing for the benefit of the white master in an act of self-degradation and denial of their African-American communal identity.