Abolitonist Movement
By Jeremy Gronemus
Abolitionist Movement
The Abolitionist movement in the United States of America was an effort to end slavery in a nation that valued personal freedom and believed "all men are created equal." Over time, abolitionists grew more strident in their demands, and slave owners entrenched in response, fueling regional divisiveness that ultimately led to the American Civil War.
David Walker
In 1829 a abolitionist named David Walker published a pamphlet in Boston: Walker's Appeal?to the Colored Citizens of the World. He born a free black in North Carolina, preached violence to be used as a proper response to the wrongs suffered by blacks under slavery. While many free blacks in parts of the South were known to have read it, the message most likely did not reach many slaves.
Tactics Used
Underground Railroad a network of assistance and safe houses for runaway slaves
United groups of like-minded individuals to fight slavery as a group
Newspapers were used to spread their ideas
Created children books about slavery in hopes to raise a future generation of abolitionist
Achievements Of the Abolisnist
- In 1787 Congress had banned slavery in the Northwest Territory
Large numbers of slaveholders in the Southern states of Maryland and Virginia freed their slaves.
- In 1852 Harriet Beecher Stowe published Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a forceful indictment of slavery. The book quickly became one of the most popular works of the time, and it was important in spreading antislavery sentiment in the North.
- Emancipation Proclamation of January 1863, which declared the freedom of slaves within the bounds of the Confederacy.