A Man But Not A Brother By George Fredrickson Summary

Not only did politics play a crucial role in the citizenship of women, but it also played a major role in the eventual emancipation of African-American slaves. In the article “A Man but Not a Brother: Abraham Lincoln and Racial Equality”, author George Fredrickson examined the various statements and influences of United States President Abraham Lincoln, to understand his political beliefs on the issues of race and slavery. When viewed all together, these elements suggest that Lincoln was not a typical Negrophobe or a firm fighter for racial equality. To put him in either category would misrepresent his views on race. One of Lincoln’s biggest influences in regards to race and slavery was Henry Clay. Like Lincoln, Clay believed in gradual emancipation,

He also felt that the African-American male was not on the same level of equality as him, due to color and Lincoln’s belief in the higher intelligence of whites. In doing so, he showed his own personal racist opinion that whites were superior to blacks. Finally, the Declaration of Independence was also a source of Lincoln’s ideology on slavery and race. In his opinion, he believed that slavery did go against the principles of the document itself. He also felt that the issue of blacks not having equal opportunities in politics was not a contradiction. This was important, because as Fredrickson pointed out, “Lincoln did not believe he had a moral right to deprecate the opinion of his countrymen which denied political equality to Negroes. To have done so would have mean denying the right of white men to judge the conditions under which their government could best secure their rights. But the Declaration of Independence asserts that the people have an indefeasible right to judge the security of their rights, and Lincoln could not deny the legitimacy of their judgment concerning the status to be accorded the Negro without denying that