Abolition Movement/ Abolitionists

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Abolition Movement/ Abolitionists

• By

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Early History of Abolitionism

• First appeared in Britain and France in 18th and
  19th centuries.
• Who was some of the early abolitionists in
  Britain?
• William Wilberforce, Thomas Clarkson, Zachary
  Macaulay, Lord Brougham
• Slavery slowly became abolished in the British
  Empire due to economic reasons

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Slavery in the United States

• Slavery became unprofitable in the North
• While slavery in the South became more profitable
  due to the inventions of the cotton gin and other
  field machinery
• Many political figures and very important people
  were against Slavery
• Which led to people wanting to help the African
  Americans and put a permanent end to slavery

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Standing in the Way

• There were many issues standing in the way of the
  abolitionists
• The Fugitive Act of 1850, which didnt allow
  citizens to help fugitive slaves
• When the Supreme Court ruled that the
  Constitution made it ok to hold slaves as
  property (1857 Dred Scott Decision)
• These issues also led to the Civil War between
  North and South

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Societies That Helped the Cause

• The American Colonization Society was formed to
  try and free the slaves
• This society was founded in 1816
• It led some of the earliest protests
• Once the slaves were freed, it tried to send
  slaves back to Liberia

• The American Anti-Slavery Society was founded in
  1833
• They tried to spread the Anti-Slavery campaign
  nation wide
• Soon local and state societies sprang up and held
  rallies and protests, they helped runaway slaves
  and blacks in the North

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Executive Committee of Pennsylvania
Anti-Slavery
Society
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Early Men Abolitionists

• Key abolitionists were William Lloyd Garrison,
  Frederick Douglass, Elihu Embree, and Elijah P.
  Lovejoy
• Frederick Douglass was a black abolitionists who
  devoted himself solely to helping slaves
• Garrison was the founder of Anti-Slavery Society
  and publisher of the Liberator

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Women Abolitionists

• Many women took part in the Abolition Movement
• Sojourner Truth was one of the key women in the
  movement and she spoke out to women
• Lucretia Mott, Sarah Angelina Grimke, Harriet
  Beecher Stowe(wrote Uncle Toms Cabin), and Lydia
  Maria Child also helped the slaves directly or
  indirectly

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The Underground Railroad

• The Underground Railroad was used in trying to
  help slaves escape from masters in the night
• Abolitionists used their homes to hide slaves
• More than 1,000 slaves escaped a year
• It was very daring and very dangerous, but it was
  for a cause

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Political Abolitionism

• Political leaders combined political power with
  direct action
• The Free Soil Party concentrated on the Wilmot
  Proviso, which would not allow lands that have
  slavery in them into the Union
• Republican party clearly stated that they were
  running with antislavery in mind

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Other Men

• James Gillespie Briney was a slaveholder, then he
  released his slaves and became an abolitionist
• He was a candidate for the Liberty Party
• Other men that contributed was James Forton,
  Robert Purvis and Wendell Phillips

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Nation Felt

• In the beginning, the Nation as a whole, was more
  for slavery
• The North began to realize that slavery was
  immoral and was useless
• The South could profit from slavery, so they
  acted like there was nothing wrong with it
• This disagreement created a great deal of
  discomfort in the Nation and eventually led to
  the Civil War

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The Negros Complaintby Maria Stewart

• Fleecy locks and black complexion,Cannot forfeit
  nature's claimSkins may differ, but
  affectionDwells in white and black the same.Why
  did all-creating nature,Make the plant for which
  we toil?Sighs must fan it, tears must
  water,Sweat of ours must dress the soil.

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The Slave MotherFrances Ellen Watkins Harper.

• Saw you the sad, imploring eye? Its every glance
  was pain, As if a storm of agony Were sweeping
  through the brain. She is a mother pale with
  fear, Her boy clings to her side, And in her
  kyrtle vainly tries His trembling form to hide.
  

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Am I Not A Man and A Brother?

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The End