The Antislavery Movement

1. The Antislavery Movement Chapter 4, Section 3

2. Life Under Slavery • Slavery grew in the South with the growth of the cotton industry. Slaves faced horrible conditions and were forced to maintain their workload by harsh “overseers”. • The brutality did not discriminate between age or gender—all slaves were subjected to the same treatment. • African Americans tried to uphold their dignity by maintaining networks of family and friends. • They too, turned to religion to help them through their hardships.

3. Life Under Slavery • Slaves resisted their oppression in a variety of ways. Many attempted to flee to the North or Mexico, where slavery was outlawed. • This led to the development of the Underground Railroad. • Some slaves even attempted revolts, such as the ones led by Denmark Vesey and Nat Turner.

4. Life Under Slavery • Vesey’s revolt took place in South Carolina. He gathered slaves and hoped to gain hundreds more and weapons when he reached Charleston. His plan was thwarted, however, and he and his accomplices were hanged. • Nat Turner’s revolt occurred just outside of Richmond, Virginia. His group killed 60 individuals before being captured by the local militia. It is remembered as being one of the bloodiestslave revolts. • In response to these revolts, southerners enacted strict lawsagainst the education and gathering of slaves.

5. The Lives of Free African Americans • Not all people of African descent were held as slaves. Some had gained their freedom, but were still discriminatedagainst. However, southerners viewed freedmen as a goal for current slaves. • In response, groups like the American Colonization Society (started under Monroe) promoted a “back to Africa” movement. The country of Liberia was set up as a colony specifically for Blacks. • With the Second Great Awakening upon he country, religion became a focal point for the slavery debate Many started to realize how slavery conflicted with their morals.

6. The Fight Against Slavery • At the beginning of the 1800s, importing slaves from Africa became against the law. Still, the importance of slaves to the cotton-producing South solidified the need for free labor. • Those that opposed slavery began speaking out to abolish, or get rid of, slavery. This reform movement became known as the abolition movement. • Newspaper editor William Lloyd Garrisonused his newspaper, The Liberator, to attract readers and convince them of the moral arguments against slavery. • This technique was known as moral suasion.

7. The Fight Against Slavery • Across the Northeastand West especially, Garrison’s views against slavery began to take root. • Identify other individuals who grew to support the abolition movement: • Angelina and Sarah Grimké, Theodore Weld and Frederick Douglass.

8. Working Against Abolition • However, there were still individuals who were supportive of the institution of slavery. • What were the arguments used by Southerners to maintain slavery? • Slavery benefited both the North and the South’s economies. • Slave labor was superior to the workers in the North. • Christianity supported slavery.

9. Working Against Abolition • What were the arguments used in the North to maintain slavery? • Fear of Black competitors taking away jobs. • Wanted to stay out of controversy– instituted a Gag Rule that prohibited debates in Congress. • Although the abolition movement was concentrated mainly in the North, there were still supporters of the movement who were vocal in their beliefs. This added to the sectionalismof the time period.

10. The Women’s Movement Chapter 4, Section 4

11. Women Work for Change • The rights and freedoms of women in the early 1800s were sharply limited. Their daily activities were generally confined to the home rather than in public. • This idea of a “cult of domesticity” limited American women from opportunities most males had. • Other cultures, such as Native Americans, African-Americans and Mexican-Americans, had provided women with opportunities and power outside of the home.

12. Women Work for Change • The Second Great Awakening created new opportunities for women. A lot of the women who worked to reform society in other areas were also working for the overall betterment of women. Two examples: • Dorothea Dix– mentally ill and imprisoned • Grimké sisters (Angelina and Sarah)– abolition • The Industrial Revolution provided new economic opportunities for women. They were able to leave the home, earn their own wages and have some economic independence.

13. Women Begin the Fight for Rights • With the emergence of a middle class in the Northeast, women were able to higher lower-class women to fulfill their roles at home. • Women began to look at their roles as comparable to slaves. • The goal of the women’s movement was to gain greater rights and opportunities for women. • However, not all women agreed on the ultimate goal(s) of the women’s movement. Many women did not speak out for full equality. • Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stantonhowever believed that drastic steps needed to be taken for women to achieve their goals.

14. Women Convene in Seneca Falls • In 1848, Mott and Stanton helped organize a women’s rights convention. It would become known as the Seneca Falls Conventionbecause of its location. Before the convention began, a Declaration of Sentimentswas drafted to outline the convention’s aims.

15. Women Convene in Seneca Falls • While the convention did not yield any concrete gains for women, it did inspire young women to take up the fight. • Amelia Bloomer would go on to publish a newspaper, The Lilythat specifically advocated for women’s equality. • Susan B. Anthonywho had been involved in both the temperance and abolition movements, focused specifically on gaining women’s suffrage, or the right to vote.