Nat Turner Movement Essay

This was a movement made in order to end slavery around the world including in a nation that had a common saying, “all men are created equal.” The Abolition movement influenced many individuals to take a stand and change people’s way of thinking, in order to create change in society. Slavery first started in Jamestown, Virginia in 1619 with slaves that were called the “20 and Odd” who were sold for goods. In addition to this, in 1636 a slave ship named Desire began the slave trade between Britain American colonies and Africa. Many colonist were unsure and uneasy with the idea of slavery and by the late 1700’s some states such as Delaware and Virginia did not allow the importation of slavery. In fact, Vermont was the first state to eradicate slavery.

All people today should show respect to African Americans due to their struggle in reaching freedom and coming across difficulty. Thomas Jefferson added an anti-slavery statement within the declaration of independence but was deleted by the southern delegates due to the pressure. As plantation systems developed, the south began to depend on the slaves even more to carry out the work of its large factory farms. Southerners saw slavery as a necessary part of the economy. Slave trade was over in 1808 by law, but the smuggling of slaves in the U.S continued until the outbreak of the civil war in 1860( Skiba pg.

By the 1650s some of the indentured servants had earned their freedom. Because replacements, whether black or white, were in limited supply and more costly, the Virginia plantation owners considered the advantages of the perpetual servitude policy exercised by Caribbean landowners. Following the lead of Massachusetts and Connecticut, Virginia legalized slavery in 1661. In 1672 the king of England chartered the Royal African Company to bring the shiploads of slaves into trading centers like Jamestown, Hampton, and Yorktown. Slavery spread quickly in the American colonies.

He didn’t believe anywhere in the United States is free because there is always the chance that a black man can be taken back into slavery because of the Fugitive Slave Laws. He believed that if a slave had the power to read or write, they had the power to free themselves. Frederick Douglass became the leading black abolitionist and one the most famous speakers of his time. His words about his treatment as a slave were a powerful weapon against slavery. People were starting to question whether he was a slave or not, which motivated him to publish his first autobiography.

But not all states wanted it to be slaves, the Southern states wanted it and the Northern states didn't. Because it was divided that way, a struggle broke out over if slaves should be free or not. Colored people, also known as slaves, were treated like they were nothing. Like they were some kind of creatures, slavery has had an impact on America for years. This impact caused rage and hurt, slaves put their blood, sweat and tears in their work to not get beaten or get their children harmed as well.

From a young age Nat’s parents told him numerous times that he would become a prophet. With this prophecy circling in his mind it is clear how Nat grew to become a threat to white slave owners. However, much like how William Lloyd Garrison gain a passionate opposition to slavery even though he would not have know what slavery was when he was a child, before Nat began his attack on whites no one ever suspected that Nat would lead such a devastating rebellion. In the eyes of the whites that knew Nat, he was just an intelligent slave who would “gabble on about strange religious powers” (Oates, p.195). Still, under the nose of his masters Nat continued on his journey to begin a revolt that would catch the south completely by surprise... ... middle of paper ... ...rt of the civil war.

Scott survived the herculean battle on the road to freedom. He pled for his family’s withdraw from slavery; however, in the end, he ended up suing his master in a case that traveled all the way up to the Supreme Court. This gave hope and courage to slaves who wanted to stand up to their masters to break their infinite ties to slavery. Scott devoted most of his life to this. He made an ever-lasting change in this world by helping lead the “rebellious South” and the “infallible North” towards the Civil War.

He did not just sit back and embrace chattel slavery, but in fact, he fought to abolish it. Nat Turner was one of the very first to take a major stand against bondage. Still to this day, he is considered to be a hero to the African American race. Without the brave actions of Nat Turner, blacks could possibly still be in bondage. Many may feel as if Turner shaped this era, but I strongly feel as if he was a product of this time.

“Give me liberty or give me death!” Patrick Henry said this during his March 23, 1775 speech about fighting to gain the New England colonies' independence from the British. This quote in 1800 inspired the words printed on Gabriel's Rebellion's banner. “Death or Liberty.” Many slave revolts like the Gabriel's Rebellion, although unable to succeed in abolishing slavery, did however show that most slaves were unhappy with their position and wanted freedom. Despite the negative results arising from many slave revolts, they stood as a source of inspiration and demonstration of a desire to be free from the slave population. Slavery is a long standing issue that has occurred in our world for many years.

Even though Turner’s rebellion had failed that does not mean that he had failed in stopping slavery. His rebellion had caused great fear in slavery and its power. “The Virginia legislature even discussed the possibility of gradually eliminating slavery after Turner's Rebellion, many of them believing that the institution of slavery was not worth living in fear of being murdered in their beds.” (ABC-Clio) Turner had put enough fear into the south that they had discussed ending slavery overall. Even though that did not happen he did make other slaves know of his revolt. This had influenced slaves to stand up against their own masters or run away from them.