Title: Mr' Salazar
1Chapter 19 and 20Test Review
2African-Americans at Mid-Century
- The life of African-Americans in the US was
difficult to say the least. Free blacks living in
both the North and the South faced discrimination
and racism. - Blacks labored as slaves long hours every day in
the South. The invention of the cotton gin had as
its main effect (although unintended) the
increased demand for more slaves.
The majority of white sutherners who did not own
slaves supported slavery because it was the main
driving force of the Souths economy.
Most slave holders were abusive and treated
slaves like grown-up children and constantly
threatened them with severe punishments.
The great majority of slaves worked as field
hands and they resisted slavery by finding ways
to avoid work, like breaking or hiding tools.
3African-Americans at Mid-Century
- Slaves desire to rebel was suppressed by their
greatest fear. What slaves feared most was to be
sold away from their families. - Thats why when they gathered together in their
invisible churches slaves brought joy and
comfort to each other.
African cultural traditions were expressed by
slaves in art and quilts they created, songs of
spirituals sung by slaves and stories and
folktales told by them!!!!
4A Divided Nation
- The issue of whether slavery should or should not
be allowed in the Louisiana Territory was raised
and put forth by Missouris application for
statehood in 1819. - This sparked a huge slavery debate that was
momentarily quieted down by the a Missouri
Compromise. - The Second great Awakening was a religious
movement but it inspired many Americans to
dedicate their lives to ending slavery.
5A Divided Nation
- The passage of a strong fugitive slave law to
return runaway slaves to their owners was the
part of the compromise of 1850 that created the
most controversy during the 1850s. - Then the Kansas- Nebraska Act led to bloodshed
over slavery in Kansas. - In the Dread Scott decision, the supreme Court
ruled that slavery could not be kept out of the
territories. It was a very surprising decision
to northerners and delightful for southerners.
6A Divided Nation
- Harpers ferry became the site of a raid
conducted by an anti- slavery and deep
abolitionist named John Brown. His raid made him
a hero among abolitionists. - These events took a very divided nation to the
polls on 1860. The results of this election
showed how deeply divided the nation was over
slavery. - Once Lincoln was president South Carolina decided
to secede form the Union. This event was turned
into a crisis when South Carolina decided not
only to secede but also to shell and bomb Fort
Sumter. The civil war had begun.