The Abolition Of Slavery And The Declaration Of Independence

The Declaration of Independence was a greatly influential piece of what can be viewed as propaganda. It brought to light many issues concerning the colonists at the time. However, the issue of slavery was not addressed. But at this time, slavery was still present. The reason for the neglect of addressing this topic in the famous document is debated, but can be observed deeply.

Abraham Lincoln addresses freedom in his speech by calling the nation to end the war and eventually ending slavery in America. According to The Gettysburg Address, “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” (Lincoln. Lines 1-3). Abraham Lincoln is citing the Declaration of Independence. It states that all men have the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and property. This was a promise that was given to all men, yet slaves were stripped of these rights. The

First things first Thomas Jefferson wanted to add slavery’s abolition to the declaration, but it caused a lot of dispute and was taken off in the end. Jefferson believes this is due Abolition of slavery is the end to the slave trade. Abolition was present in the colonies during the American Revolution because they were getting rid of British law in exchange

During this time many slaves were freed from their bondages. Some slave were able to buy there way to freedom (E), but others relied on the action of white people for their liberation (D). The Declaration of independence stated that all men are created; people fought and died for these republican ideals. People then, after they established a nation based upon those ideals, would had to face the contradiction of slavery, so in some areas they called for a end to slavery. For example, the Vermont constitution outlawed slavery in

The Emancipation Proclamation was “stronger on proclamation than on emancipation” as it claimed that slaves were forever free but some areas this did take affect. True freedom for slaves was ultimately achieved with

In 1775, Lord Dunmore, Royal Governor of Virginia, issued a document called Dunmore’s Proclamation during the American Revolutionary War. Dunmore’s was offering freedom to any slave that agreed to fight for the King. Dunmore was expecting slaves in the colony of Virginia to abandon their owners and enlist in royal forces to claim the liberty they were promised. Obviously, quite a few colonist were upset with the program “Liberty to Slaves”, since they believed liberty should only be given to Europeans and Euro-Americans. It became apparent that the slaves that were joining royal forces were motivated by desire for freedom and not allegiance to the crown. As a result, Dunmore’s Proclamation helped undecided colonists to determine whether they

The first slaves were brought to America in the early 1700s, before the country even had its independence. The slave population continued to grow until ultimately slavery was abolished after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, during the civil war. However, this fight towards abolishment of slavery did not come to be overnight. It took years of dispute and fighting for this conclusion to ultimately come to be. There were many different tactics abolitionists used as they strove to end slavery.

In 1776, The Declaration of Independence was written by one of the superior writers in that time, Thomas Jefferson. The Declaration of Independence clearly stated that the colonies became an independent nation. By declaring independence, many men were inspired to fight for the cause, but also angered those who were left out of the rights. The words, “All men are created equal,” caused antagonism and annoyance throughout the colonies to those who did not fall in the social class of white men in the age of 21 and owned property. Source B refers to the letter written by Abigail Adams to John Adams about establishing rights for women. On the other hand, Source C is a Slave Petition that mentions the results of slavery and their little known rights.

The Emancipation Proclamation was issued by President Abraham Lincoln. This document stated that all of the enslaved people within the rebellious states are forever free. President Lincoln’s view towards the United States Constitution was that it protected slavery within the states it previously existed. Thus, Lincoln did not declare the document at the time because he understood that the northern states would not fight for slavery liberation. Later in 1862, slaves started to join the northern army. President Lincoln perceived this this as a sign of nullification and he could now continue on with the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln’s Secretary of State was William H. Seward, he advised that they waited to issue the Proclamation until they

Lasting six years, the American Revolution resulted in a significant amount of lives being lost, not only to war but to disease and infection as well (Schultz, 2013). Division among the colonists was felt between those loyal to the cause and the rebels, as well as, the ones that were indifferent to either (Schultz, 2013). Disruptions of daily life resulted because soldiers were away from their homes and families for extended amounts of time and women managed the households, families, and civic life (Schultz, 2013). Additionally, slaves were unsure of their futures because there were no signs of them obtaining freedom (Schultz, 2013).

Slavery in America began during the early 17th century and followed with the abolitionist movement in the late 1800’s. This movement created a continental divide between southern and northern states. In the south, there are the Southern Democrats who supported the idea of slavery and believed that the institution was necessary for the survival of the south. Southern Democrats also argued that the North turned their back on the “real” America. While the northern states were composed of Republicans, such as Abraham Lincoln, whose efforts to exterminate slavery eventually caused the absorption of anti-slavery Whigs and most of the Know-Nothing party. In the years that followed, slavery fueled the fire that started the Civil War.

The Civil War may have ended, yet that did not seem to halt the blatant racism that continued to linger throughout the country during the Reconstruction period. The Thirteenth Amendment was a great step forward for this country, unfortunately not every southern individual felt this way. Freed slaves faced a multitude of problems ahead; even if people believed in abolishing slavery, that did not necessarily mean they agreed with freed people possessing the same civil rights as themselves. Abolishing slavery was the first step, but dealing with the social, economic, and political racism was to be dealt with in the years to come.

On July 5, 1852, Douglass begins questioning a series of matter involving the Declaration of Indepence. Although the Declaration of Independence freed the United States from Great Britain, the slaves were still kept in chains and put into labor with no freedom. One question asks, “Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?”(Douglass 432).

The Colonial Period in America was a revolutionary era that lasted through the years of 1607-1776. The Speech in the Virginia Convention, written by Patrick Henry, and the Declaration of Independence, written by Thomas Jefferson, were two major components that influenced the colonists to fight for their freedom against the British. During these Colonials times, many speeches, events, and documents, leading up to the American Revolutionary War, impacted the outcome of our nation today.

When you think of the abolishment of slavery, what is the first place you think of? Was it the United States? Maybe even Africa? Although these two regions are well discussed in the history of slavery there are for more areas that were involved. For the purpose of this paper, the two regions that have been chosen are the United States and Haiti. The United States was colonized by a mix of different races. The most predominant were English settlers and Haiti was predominantly French settlers. These two regions bought, sold and traded slaves by the use of the Transatlantic Slave trade. However, both the United States and Haiti played a significant role in the abolishment of slavery.