Impact Of John Woolman On African American Abolitionists

Frederick Douglass is termed as one of the gifted orators and an outstanding protestor (abolitionist). Abolitionists can be termed as individuals who believed that their role as Christians was to fight against the oppression that was brought about by slavery because of their faith. Protestors such as Douglass believed that active participation and crusading would help them attain freedom for slaves.

Frederick Douglass, the author of the book “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, said “I saw more clearly than ever the brutalizing effects of slavery upon both slave and slaveholder” (Douglass, p.71). Modern people can fairly and easily understand the negative effects of slavery upon slave. People have the idea of slaves that they are not allow to learn which makes them unable to read and write and also they don’t have enough time to take a rest and recover their injuries. However, the negative effects upon slaveholder are less obvious to modern people. People usually think about the positive effects of slavery upon slaveholder, such as getting inexpensive labor. In the book “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, Douglass

William Lloyd Garrison was also a famous abolitionist. He lived in Newburyport, Massachusetts, from 1805 to 1879. In 1830, William Lloyd Garrison became involved with “immediate emancipation.” In 1831, he started publishing his newspaper called The Liberator in Boston. This paper was supported by many free slaves. In 1833, Garrison and many other people from all races met in Philadelphia to establish the American Anti-Slavery Society, which said that slavery is a sin and it should be abolished immediately. Even though many abolitionists were pro-Union, Garrison felt like the Union should be “dissolved” since they supported the Constitution, which he felt was a pro-slavery document. Garrison wasn’t a fan of war, because he thought that slavery should be abolished peacefully, but he supported the Civil War.

He notes that, the slavery institution made them forget about their origin, and anything else that entails their past, and even when they were born. The slaves forgot everything about their families, and none knew about their family because, they were torn from them without any warning. Douglass explains how they went without food, clothing and even sleep because their masters were cruel to them. American slavery took advantage of black laborers as they were beaten mercilessly without committing any offense. They were not treated as human beings, but as property that could be manipulated in any way. The slavery institution was harsh for the Africans especially women who were regularly raped, and forced to bear their masters children and if they declined, they were maimed or killed.

One of the key arguments in “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” as well as in other narratives about slaves is inequality. Douglass attempts to show us how African American slaves were still human beings like their white counterparts, there have been numerous instances where it is shown that many whites did not want to accept slaves as true humans. Frederick

“It was not color, but crime, not God, but man that afforded the true explanation of the existence of slavery; nor was I long in finding out another important truth, what man can make, man can unmake” (Douglass 59). In My Bondage and My Freedom, Fredrick Douglass explains in detail the harsh and cruel realties of slavery and how slavery was an institution that victimized not only slaves, but slave holders, and non-slave holding whites. Fredrick Douglass could not have been more right with his observation of slavery. In my opinion, slavery is not only an institution, but is a prime example of a corrupt business model that thrives on free labor, ultimate control, and wealth.

The second reason John Brown is a terrorist is because he had a raid at the Pottawatomie Creek in Kansas. He killed pro slave people clearly because he did not agree with their views on slavery, but is that a truly a justifiable reason to take another mans life? John Brown had the right mind to abolish slavery, but there could have been a better way, like protesting to the point not even the government can refuse since the people are a, “Great beast”, as said by Alexander Hamilton.

Being an abolitionist was not a popular stance in pre-civil war America. Levi Coffin and his wife were abolitionists who assisted thousands of slaves make their way to freedom threw the Underground Railroad. The Coffins were radical, they risked their own freedom to help strangers have theirs. Levi was middle class white business owner, he had no incentive to speak out against slavery. In contrast to society the Coffins not only opposed slavery, but they took action against it. They begin housing run a way slaves in their own home. This was extremely risky because if they were caught they would be imprisoned and lose all they owned. Once they had a very close encounter with law. When questioned they refused to deny that they had slaves hidden,

Lewis Tappan, a descendant of Benjamin Franklin, wanted to change the world. As an admitted Christian evangelistic abolitionist, he firmly believed slavery was a moral wrong and openly opposed it. He called for many of the leading

William Lloyd Garrison was a leader among the American abolitionists, a self-made journalist, and social reformer. He was world renown, considered one of the most vocal opponents of slavery before the Civil War. Garrison made an impact on the abolitionist movement by promoting non-violent and non-political resistance, calling for the immediate end to slavery as well as equal rights for black Americans.

Black and white abolitionists shared common assumptions about the evil of slavery, the "virtue of moral reform", and the certainty of human progress"(1). Schor, Garnet,1877, & Lanngston, 1989). This shared understanding provided "the basic for the interracial solidarity" and cooperation so vital in the crusade against slavery"(2). (Schor and Garnet, 1877). But blacks also brought a distinct perspective to the antislavery movement. Their abolitionism was shaped profoundly by their personal experience and racial oppression. Unlike most white abolitionists, they

Do you know how hard it is to supply and help hundreds of slaves?Levi Coffin was an American Quaker and an abolitionist. He was a businessman and an active leader of the underground railroad. Life of a station master is tough and Levi coffin went through it all, but he overcame it triumphantly. To get things started,When Levi Coffin was in his childhood he grew up around slavery. He was born on October,1998 in Guilford County North Carolina. Coffin also had 6 siblings,at the time, though that would not have been a lot of children. First,many abolitionists were Quakers, Quakers believed in nonviolence and peace. One of the reasons Coffin became an abolitionist was because he was a Quaker. Second,once he reached a

Frederick Douglass is perhaps the most well-known abolitionist from American history. He is responsible for creating a lot of support for the abolitionist movement in the years before the Civil War. He, along with many others, was able to gain support for and attention to the abolitionist movement. People like him are the reason that slavery ended in the United States.

The primary challenge facing these 18th-century activists was moving a conviction that slavery was wrong. The new phase of abolitionism after 1830 stretched through new antislavery institutions and new forms of activism. “In 1832 Garrison and ten others formed the New England Anti-Slavery Society. In 1833 Garrison and two wealthy New York City businessmen and philanthropists Arthur and Lewis Tappan played key roles in establishing the American Anti-Slavery Society (AASS). Also in 1833 black and white women of Boston organized the interracial Boston Female Anti-Slavery Society, and women established a similarly constituted organization in Philadelphia. Many other local and state societies appeared during these years. By 1837 Massachusetts had 145 different antislavery societies; New York had 274; and Ohio, 214. Abolitionist sentiment was strongest in New England, New York, and their cultural surroundings across the upper Midwest. By 1838 the AASS claimed nearly 250,000 members and 1350 affiliated societies

Amongst the injustice and brutality of slavery is the exclusion of education and knowledge. The slaveholder would tactically deprive the slaves of any knowledge because it would expose them of slavery’s injustice. This act dehumanized the slaves to a great extent, and at the same time forbade them to pursue any form of freedom, physically or spiritually. Hugh Auld, Douglass’s master reasoned that “it was unlawful, as well as unsafe, to teach a slave to read” and believed “If you have a nigger an inch, he will take an ell.” (Douglass 40, 41) Auld advocated his reasoning by calling a slave “unmanageable,” “unhappy,” and “discontented” if enlightened. Douglass however understood differently. The withdrawal of literacy and knowledge, he believed, was one of the greater factors keeping blacks inferior to whites in society. The Narrative also documents the many physiological effects of slaveholding. Douglass carefully explains the masters whipping their slaves when they least deserve it, and overlooking their deeds when they most deserve it. The killing of a slave is also considered the least of an offense or crime, and is simply gone