Radical Abolitionist Movement

Abolitionists demanded the emancipation of all slaves, as well as racial equality in America. The movement was led by freed black slaves such as Frederick Douglass and white advocates like Elizabeth Cady Stanton. One of the most significant leaders in the movement was William Lloyd Garrison, who began publishing a weekly paper called the Liberator which advocated for the total abolition of slavery in America. Many abolitionists argued that owning slaves was a sin and therefore a direct crime against God. A religious anti-slavery advocate said, "Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"— Patrick Henry, Speech in the Virginia Convention, March, 1775. Another, non-religious argument towards slavery was that it was an inefficient system and America was not advancing economically with it. Benjamin Franklin said that slavery was “an atrocious debasement of human nature”. Abolitionists were not looked upon kindly by much of the population, they often faced harassment, assault, and heckling. In Concord, New Hampshire in 1835, John Greenleaf Whittier and George Thompson were stoned for being abolitionists. After these acts of violence, many Americans began to join The Abolitionist Movement because they believed that everyone deserved the Constitutional right to speak freely. The attacks on abolitionists were sometimes justified in certain newspapers, but others, like the Hampshire Gazette, criticized the

In the United States, during the eighteen-hundreds’, a small group of people believed that slavery was immoral and did many things to abolish it. John Brown, a Caucasian male who was part of this group of people, did two things that many people in United States history didn’t have the passion to do. John Brown’s life was very interesting: His early life and transition to adulthood, his decision to fight for the cause, his actions of violence in Kansas and Harper’s Ferry, along with, the long-lasting effects of these actions led to his hanging. These events were pivotal to the beginning of the Civil War.

Did you know that some people,including President Abraham Lincoln, believed that John Brown was a “misguided fanatic?” I believe that John Brown was a “misguided fanatic” because of how he committed treason as well as murder while he was trying to put a stop to slavery. For instance,according to, “The Last Meeting Between Frederick Douglass and John Brown”, Douglass believed that John Brown’s plan of invading the Federal arsenal at Harper 's Ferry, Virginia would “ have been fatal to the work of the helping slaves escape.” Another example, as specified by “John Brown’s Speech”, John Brown never prearranged to murder and commit treason, it just went horribly wrong. Since John Brown did commit treason, I believe that John Brown would have done

John Brown and other famous abolitionist took part in what is now known as the raid on Harper’s Ferry. Which started as way to inspire slaves to revolt, but ended up with the death of John Brown and a few others. Some people think of John Brown as a crazy murderer. Although others, such as myself, think of him as a “misguided fanatic.” In other words, according to dictionary.com, misguided means misled or mistaken and fanatic means a person with an extreme and uncritical enthusiasm. John Brown was a “misguided fanatic” because he stood up for what he thought was right even if nobody else did. For instance, in Frederick Douglass’s book ,The Life and Times of Frederick Douglass, Douglass describes a conversation about

In America, opposition to slavery started with acts of defiance such as “slave resistance”, where African American slaves would rebel in several ways to attain greater freedom. While this “revolution” gathered steam, with slaves often running away from their masters and finding shelter in swamps, lakes or in cities that believed in their cause, more organized forms of opposition, led by reformers like William Garrison (Document E), who founded The American Anti-Slave Society, also started gaining traction. The growing opposition to slavery, by both slaves and their white sympathizers, eventually culminated in a determined abolitionist movement that highlighted the plight of so many and galvanized public opinion against an appalling institution.

The Civil War was caused by a combination of the problems of slavery, state’s rights, economic sectional differences, and political blunders and extremism. These factors combined in the 1850s to create a tense environment in which nearly every action could potentially lead to war. While the Civil War was inevitable, it was definitely partially caused by the extremism and poor political leadership of the preceding decade. However, these factors emerged out of cultural, economic, and political differences that were nearly a century in the making.

The Civil War was caused by three main reasons are economic differences, interpretation of Constitution, and moral beliefs.

Slavery in America first began in the first permanent English settlement, Jamestown, in 1619. African slaves were brought to this colony to assist the colonist in the production of the profitable crop tobacco. Slavery in America would go on to be practiced throughout the America until the late 18th century. The abolition movement was an endeavor to abolish slavery in the United States.

The question of morality in a criminal case has always been a topic of concern. A question arises when considering the following; does a good cause justify a serious crime? In John Brown’s case, he uses the abolitionist’s cause to justify the murder of several men. Though his intentions were good, and his cause was mighty, it’s not morally sound to murder people. Many would argue that he was a hero, that fighting for the end of slavery in the manner he did was an act of bravery. However, radicalism of any variety is still dangerous. Though he was well-meaning, John Brown’s actions were not only inexcusable, but has the potential to reflect negatively on the abolitionist cause.

On December fifteenth, in eighteen sixty-five, the United States abolished slavery with the thirteenth amendment. Powerful individuals such as Frederick Douglass, David Walker, Nat Turner, Sojourner Truth, and Benjamin Banneker were people that longed to see the day that they would be free from slavery. Although these five individuals were never in contact with one another they all shared the same drive and motivation to change the way people viewed slavery for the better. These individuals accomplished their goal of changing slavery with a strong belief in god, a strong political voice and a light in them that never died.

John Brown is a fervent abolitionist who seizes the arsenal at the Harpers Ferry, planning to start a slave revolt. On the night of October 16, 1859, he leads 21 men to the arsenal and does an act of violence. He brutally kills many innocent people just because they are in his way. Although John Brown tries to end slavery, which is a good deed, he does use violence, and murder people who are innocent; therefore, John Brown is guilty of murder, treason, and insurrections.

In the world today there are many definitions of terrorism, but there is not one definition for terrorism because not everyone can agree on one. I believe John Brown is a freedom fighter, but the actions he attempted like at Harper's Ferry and Pottawatomie Creek is most likely to be a terrorist act. When John Brown was young he lived in a religious family. John Brown memorized the Bible and strongly believed in God. His family believed that there should be no slavery. When John Brown was older he took a vowel to be an abolitionist which means someone who is against slavery.

In 1859 an abolitionist led a raid of 20 men to a federal arsenal in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in order to supply slaves with weapons and provoke a slave rebellion (B). This man was named John Brown. Born to an evangelical Christian family, Brown deeply hated slavery and favored military tactics to abolish it (C). Viewed as a martyr in the North and a murderer in the South, he had a great impact on the abolition movement. People even today continue to debate on how to define him. Although many consider John Brown a terrorist since he led a premeditated attack on the South, he is a freedom fighter since he increased abolition support and he lived up to the revolutionary principles of America.

John Brown shouldn’t be known as a terrorist or a national hero because of his violent attack and raids. After, September 11, 2001 John Brown has been called a terrorist which has caused controversy about Brown’s legacy and reputation. Furthermore, in the article, The 9/11 of 1859 says, “He led 21 men all but two in their 20s, and many of them radicalized by guerilla fighting in Bleeding Kansas, the abolitionists’ Afghanistan”(Horowitz). This shows that he had planned these violent intentionally and

This movement was led by the author of the Liberator, William Lloyd Garrison. He created “The Liberator” as his way of spreading anti-slavery. By 1820, this had caused an uprising of the southerners. The southerners began to violently protest. Another important individual of the anti-slavery movement was Harriet Tubman. Tubman conducted the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escape. The Underground Railroad was not a real railroad, it was the routes out of the south. On these routes, the slaves followed Harriet Tubman at night in order to escape the horrific conditions that they were living in. In conclusion, slavery was abolished later on in life, but at this point slaves were getting more violent, determined, and confident in themselves. For example, Nat Turner was a slave who killed his master and 60 other white men. The revolt spread, but it was finally stopped by federal troops. In the 1830’s-1840’s serious slave uprisings came about in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and