America: A Concise History, Research Paper Example

How did the abolitionists’ proposals and methods differ from those of earlier anti-slavery movements? What connections might there be between the abolitionist movement and the American independence movement?

The goal of abolitionists was to reform slave laws. This method contrasts to those established by earlier anti-slavery movements because abolitionists were represented by people of distinct races and methodologies. As a consequence, the abolitionist movement was not one unified movement; rather, it reflected the personal ideologies of each individual group that was fighting to end slavery. Many groups coordinated a “plan of attack” consisting of three steps (338). The first was to use religion to discredit slavery, the second tactic was to help fugitive slaves, and the third was joining women’s suffrage efforts (340). The abolitionist movement was connected to the American Independence movement because it was defined by the attempt of a small minority group to gain power from its governing body. In this situation, the United States was acting like Britain while the abolitionists were acting as American revolutionaries in the fight for freedom. ANALYSIS/OPINION: It appears that the abolitionists used many models of revolution that had been demonstrated as successful in the past. Allowing the movement to be tied into Christian ideals helped many people realize that the Bible would not permit such treatment of humans, while helping fugitive slaves helped end some of the suffering of these people. Joining the women’s suffrage movement was valuable because it allowed people to make connections between the struggles of white women and other minority groups to make them realize the errors of their ways. QUESTION: My question for the class this week is: Do you that promoting religious values was an effective way of making individuals that were pro-slavery in the United States regret their actions regarding the enslavement of African Americans?

Works Cited

Edwards, Rebecca; Henretta, James A; and Self, Robert O. America: A Concise History. Volume 2: since 1865. (New York, NY: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2012), 337-341.