Abolitionism Dbq

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Since the formation of slavery, it has been perceived as a controversial topic that caused many differences between abolitionist and anti-abolitionist. There was no easy fix to this situation, therefore it left congress trying to ignore the issue, however, laws were passed as needed to keep the peace and avoid an uprising. Turmoil began as western expansions grew more common and abolitionist feared the spread of slavery westward. Westward expansion left many on the edge of their seats as no definite answer seemed in sight, which made the events of the 1850’s more catastrophic and important. The United States was not righteous in their decision to allow slavery to expand westward. This resulted in an increase in tensions between North and South …show more content…

In 1852 Uncle Tom’s Cabin was written and was a large step towards the civil war because it was one of the first novels to discuss the idea of abolition. It also portrayed the emotional effect of slavery and captured the nation’s attention which angered the south because they did not want people to question slavery to be a negative thing. The book helped and supported the north or abolitionist ideas. Furthermore, in 1854 the Kansas-Nebraska act formed as people questioned if they should join as free or slave states. The act stated that both territories will fall under the idea of popular sovereignty, or people vote not congress. This could tip the balance of slave versus free states and repealed the Missouri Compromise, which is important because it increased sectionalism as people realized, however, these states end up will dictate the future for the United States. This act resulted in “Bleeding Kansas” which was a violent political encounter between abolitionist and anti-abolitionist. Moreover, the Dred Scott decision of 1857 was a major push towards the civil war. Dred Scott was a slave whose owner moved to free state for several years during which time Scott decided to sue for freedom. The results of the trail, however, stunned the north, or abolitionist, as Chef Justice Roger Taney ruled that slaves are not citizens and because of this they do not have the right to …show more content…

Slavery is a controversial topic that has been hard for many politicians to address because of this there is no easy fix which left congress trying to ignore the issue. Abolitionist feared slavery expanding west as more territories were gained. However, the events of the 1850’s directly led to the civil war because the tensions were at a high and sectional tensions increased. Could the civil war have been avoided, all though there is no answer people still question if there was a peaceful end to this horrific

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