During the 17th century the abolition of slavery was a highly talked about civil issue. There were many people who fought for slavery to end. They were called abolitionists. There were also just as many people people who wanted slavery to continue. It was a problem for the entire country and abolitionist support was needed. Two well-known abolitionists were Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison. For over a decade they were close friends and co-workers in the American Anti-Slavery Society. Frederick Douglass was a famous black human-rights leader in the anti-slavery movement. William Lloyd Garrison was a white American journalistic crusader who helped lead the successful abolitionist campaign against slavery in the United States. However
Frederick Douglass made the most of his years after escaping from slavery in 1852. Douglass spread his words against slavery through being a well-known writer. Douglass was one of the most prominent reform leaders of his era (Foner, 481). A popular document written by Frederick Douglass on July 5th, 1852, spread some powerful words among the nation. Douglass’s speech was titled “What to the slave is the Fourth of July”. When his speech was published, his intended audience was his “fellow citizens” and those unaware that the Fourth of July was a day of mourning for slaves; unlike white Americans celebrating the day of freedom. The reason Douglass’s speech was published was to bring attention to the separation on the Fourth of July between white and black Americans. Even though Frederick Douglass was free he could not celebrate but mourn the day for horror of the past and presence of slave cruelty.
Imagine growing up in a society where a person is restricted to learn because of his or her ethnicity? This experience would be awful and very emotional for one to go through. Sherman Alexie and Fredrick Douglas are examples of prodigies who grew up in a less fortunate community. Both men experienced complications in similar and different ways; these experiences shaped them into men who wanted equal education for all. To begin, one should understand the writers background. Sherman Alexie wrote about his life as a young Spokane Indian boy and the life he experienced (page 15). He wrote to encourage people to step outside their comfort zone and be herd throughout education. Similar to Alexie’s life experience, Fredrick
The use of labor came in two forms; indenture servitude and Slavery used on plantations in the south particularly in Virginia. The southern colonies such as Virginia were based on a plantation economy due to factors such as fertile soil and arable land that can be used to grow important crops, the plantations in the south demanded rigorous amounts of labor and required large amounts of time, the plantation owners had to employ laborers in order to grow crops and sell them to make a profit. Labor had become needed on the plantation system and in order to extract cheap labor slaves were brought to the south in order to work on the plantations. The shift from indentured servitude to slavery was an important time as well as the factors that contributed to that shift, this shift affected the future generations of African American descent. The history of colonial settlements involved altercations and many compromises, such as Bacons Rebellion, and slavery one of the most debated topics in the history of the United States of America. The different problems that occurred in the past has molded into what is the United States of America, the reflection in the past provides the vast amount of effort made by the settlers to make a place that was worth living on and worth exploring.
Abolitionists thoughts became progressively conspicuous in Northern places of worship and politics in the 1830’s which contributed to the territorial ill will amongst the North and South, essentially dividing the nation in two. The southern economy grew increasingly dependent on “king cotton” and the system of slaves that sustained it.
During the 1980's southern blacks from the United States dedicated to migrate to the north with the belief that the north had more opportunities and advantages blacks. Although, Frederick Douglas and Booker T. Washington opposed a migration to the north, millions of blacks migrated northward. The industries for the blacks migrating t o the north was what Douglas and Washington feared, black northern workers being placed in the same situation prior to their movement. Blacks were going to experience the same obstacles and disadvantages as they had in the south just with different situations. Northern blacks were going to experience prejudice, riots and murdering.
For Edmund S. Morgan American slavery and American freedom go together hand in hand. Morgan argues that many historians seem to ignore writing about the early development of American freedom simply because it was shaped by the rise of slavery. It seems ironic that while one group of people is trying to break the mold and become liberated, that same group is making others confined and shattering their respectability. The aspects of liberty, race, and slavery are closely intertwined in the essay, 'Slavery and Freedom: The American Paradox.'
In the 1820's, the abolitionist has not attracted many followers because there seemed to be no way to abandon slavery without another revolution. As the constitution stated that states can allow slavery, though the Northerners did not want slavery, they felt it was not their responsibility to fight against with it. State leaders such as John Adams who was against slavery, were scared to speak out against slavery as they fear to lose the support from the slave owners. During this critical period, people need a radical hero to facilitate the American Revolution.
Abolitionism quickly gained popularity since 1821 when William Lloyd Garrison assisted in writing an anti-slavery newspaper, The Genius of Universal Emancipation, with Benjamin Lundy. In 1831, abolitionism continued to grow in popularity when William Lloyd Garrison started The Liberator. Although there remained not a need for slaves in the North, slavery remained very big in the South for growing “cash crops.” The majority of the abolitionists who inhabited the North organized speeches, meetings, and newspapers to spread their cause. Initially, only small revolts and fights occurred.
During Frederick Douglass lifetime he had a big impact on the society, which still can be understood today by looking at how the society developed during his lifetime, and even after his death. The main significance that Douglass did was through his great oral skills, which he used both as a politician, and as a lecturer. Already when Douglass was thirty-three years old he was a part of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society (MASS). Up till 1847, which was, the year when he turned twenty-nine he was one of the most well known persons in the organization. (Fanuzzi, pg. 55) The Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society was an organization that was started by William Lloyd Garrison, as can be understood through the name the organization was against slavery.
The abolition of slavery started in 1777. In the North the abolition of slavery was the first to start. But, in the South it started during the 1800’s. The Northern states gave blacks some freedom, unlike the Southern states. The national population was 31,000,000 and four and one-half, were African American. Free african males had some limits with their freedom. There were many political, social, or economic restrictions placed on the freedom of free blacks in the North, but the three most important are, Political and Judicial Rights, Social Freedom, and Economic.
Frederick Douglass's Narrative, first published in 1845, is an enlightening and incendiary text. Born into slavery, Douglass became the preeminent spokesman for his people during his life; his narrative is an unparalleled account of the inhumane effects of slavery and Douglass's own triumph over it. His use of vivid language depicts violence against slaves, his personal insights into the dynamics between slaves and slaveholders, and his naming of specific persons and places made his book an indictment against a society that continued to accept slavery as a social and economic institution. Like Douglass, Harriet Jacobs was born into slavery, and in 1853 she published Letter from a Fugitive Slave, now recognized as one of the most comprehensive antebellum slave narratives written by an African-American woman. Jacobs's account broke the silence on the exploitation of African American female slaves.
Contrary to common misconceptions, the Civil War that occurred from 1861 to 1865 was not about slavery or about African American rights. The war was primarily about the northern desire of economic expansion which was in the way of the southern lifestyle. However, slavery was still a huge part of the war and the African Americans poured blood, sweat and tears into fighting for their rights and gaining their equality. Following the Emancipation Proclamation of 1862, black soldiers were allowed to enlist in the war; however, the circumstances differed in different regions. Numerous slaves were able to escape their horrible lives due to influential figures such as Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass who risked their lives in order to free fellow
“Where justice is denied, where poverty is enforced, where ignorance prevails, and where any one class is made to feel that society is an organized conspiracy to oppress, rob and degrade them, neither persons nor property will be safe”( Douglass). This famous quote epitomizes the philosophies of Frederick Douglass, in which he wanted everyone to be treated with dignity; if everyone was not treated with equality, no one person or property would be safe harm. His experience as a house slave, field slave and ship builder gave him the knowledge to develop into a persuasive speaker and abolitionist. In his narrative, he makes key arguments to white abolitionist and Christians on why slavery should be abolished. The key arguments that Frederick Douglass tries to vindicate are that slavery denies slaves of their identity, slavery is also detrimental for the slave owner, and slavery is ungodly.
Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Benjamin Rush were some of the first to form abolitionist groups against slavery. Another significant group who formed against slavery were the Quakers; this was a religious group who settled in the Northern part of the country (Larson, 2015). Slavery was against the Quakers religion, and therefore they had to stand against it. All men were equal in the eyes of God. Some other important men who help stand against slavery were Thomas Clarkson and William Wilberforce. These men also supported the abolitionist groups and would fight against British ships that would carry over slaves (William Wilberforce (1759 - 1833), 2014). These men along with other public figures helped to raise awareness about how slaves were treated, and the grim ship rides over to America slaves had to endure. These men helped end the slave trade with the ships but did not free slaves. Each action taken by men like William Wilberforce willing to fight for what is right was a step in helping the thirteenth amendment become a reality one day. The picture below is a map of the slave trade which was eventually stopped due to William Wilberforce and others who supported him: This amendment divided many people especially the North and the South. One could argue that those who approved of slavery only wanted to keep slavery for their own greedy reason such as free labor of the lands profiting from cotton, and tobacco. Antislavery
The abolitionist movement grew in numbers and in strength during this time. William Lloyd Garrison and the Grimké sisters spoke out publicly against slavery, although, these and other white abolitionists drew public attention to the cause, African Americans themselves played a major role in antislavery efforts. Frederick Douglass was the most widely known African American abolitionist. Others took more direct action in leading enslaved people to freedom. The Underground Railroad helped runaway slaves from the South reach freedom and safety in the North. The most famous “conductor” on this train was Harriet Tubman.