"I will be heard!": Prominent Abolitionists  In the 1830s, American abolitionists, led by Evangelical Protestants, gained momentum in their battle to end slavery. Abolitionists believed that slavery was a national sin, and that it was the moral obligation of every American to help eradicate it from the American landscape by gradually freeing the slaves and returning them to Africa.. Not all Americans agreed. Views on slavery varied state by state, and among family members and neighbors. Many Americans—Northerners and Southerners alike—did not support abolitionist goals, believing that anti-slavery activism created economic instability and threatened the racial social order. Show But by the mid-nineteenth century, the ideological contradictions between a national defense of slavery on American soil on the one hand, and the universal freedoms espoused in the Declaration of Independence on the other hand, had created a deep moral schism in the national culture. During the thirty years leading up to the Civil War, anti-slavery organizations proliferated, and became increasingly effective in their methods of resistance. As the century progressed, branches of the abolitionist movement became more radical, calling for the immediate end of slavery. Public opinion varied widely, and different branches of the movement disagreed on how to achieve their aims. But abolitionists found enough strength in their commonalities—a belief in individual liberty and a strong Protestant evangelical faith—to move their agenda forward. Continue the tour
The Abolition Movement describes activity that took place in the 1800s to the end of slavery. In the United States, antislavery activity began in colonial days. Although the Quakers of Pennsylvania had opposed slavery from its inception and stressed the importance of ending sinful practices and upholding the activities God wanted in society, there was no national movement in America until William Lloyd Garrison began his crusade in the early 1830s. In December 19833, the three most active antislavery organizations, the Philadelphia Quakers, the New England Garrisonians, and the New York Reformers, met with freed blacks to form an organization called the America Anti-Slavery Society. Abolitionists initially focused their efforts on church members and clergymen. If the concept of the abolition of slavery could be driven home from the pulpits, the attitudes of White Americans would surely change. Garrison was not the consummate politician who sought compromise on the matter of slavery. Not only did he advocate the emancipation of slaves, but also suggested that blacks be given the same political and economic rights that were afforded to Whites only. Many Northerners would accept the gradual elimination of slavery, but giving blacks equal rights to compete among Whites was totally unacceptable. Although their numbers did grow rapidly, most White clergymen would not speak out against slavery. The abolitionists knew that they had to influence the many northerners who where still undecided on abolition of slavery issue in order to reach their goal. Northern abolitionists would assist the slaves in running away, or simply attempt to speak to people on the topic. By the 19th century, the institution of slavery was somewhat gone from the North, but this institution remained strong in the South because their economy depended on slave labor. The southern plantation owners were not willing to follow in the North's footsteps because their income would decrease a considerable amount. Having this difference in their lifestyles began to cause tension, and would soon get the ball rolling toward abolition. While abolitionists struggled in the North to change the attitudes of the White Northerner, no such efforts took place in the South, and as abolitionists grew in numbers in the North they were completely disappearing in the South. Southern state legislatures banned antislavery material. Southern hospitality for abolitionists was a rope with a noose or a whip. By the late 1830s there were no known abolitionists in the South, and northern abolitionists were seen committing acts of violence against the South. John Brown, a well-known abolitionist at the time, wanted to purchase some land in Virginia so that escaping slaves would have a place to go. From there John would help them escape to the North. In order to do this, he decided that he was going to attack Harper's Ferry, a southern fort, so that he could acquire arms. He and 22 other people attacked the ferry and lost. They were all caught and killed. This is the most important violent act performed by an abolitionist- it is this attack that started the Civil War. After the Civil War began in 1861, abolitionists rallied to the Union cause. They rejoiced when President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declaring the slaves free in many parts of the South. In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution abolished slavery in the country. Large numbers of abolitionists then joined the fight to win social and political equality for blacks. Although Garrison did not initially see his goals come to fruition, he and others in the abolitionist movement did succeed in bringing the matter of slavery into the forefront. Related Links
How did the North react to the abolitionist movement?Yet those who espoused abolitionist sentiments were a very small percentage of the population in the North in the years prior to the Civil War. Most Northerners felt that abolitionists were extremists whose views were far outside of the mainstream of American life.
What was the Southern response to the abolitionist movement?Southern state legislatures banned antislavery material. Southern hospitality for abolitionists was a rope with a noose or a whip. By the late 1830s there were no known abolitionists in the South, and northern abolitionists were seen committing acts of violence against the South.
What was the outcome of the abolitionist movement?By 1833 all enslaved people in the British colonies in the Western Hemisphere were freed. Slavery was abolished in the French colonial possessions 15 years later. In 1863 Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared that enslaved people in the Confederate states were free.
Why was abolitionism not a popular movement in the North?Why was abolitionism not a popular movement in the North or South? It was not popular in the North because it was viewed as a threat to the existing social system and it was not popular in the South because most of the southerners society was based on agriculture which had slaves doing most of the work.
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