The Rise Of Slavery During The Antebellum Era

The United States has not always lived up to its ideals of unity and coexistence amongst its constituent states. This was the case during the Antebellum era, in which the nation was exsanguinated by the wounds of division as the Northern and Southern states had a tense interaction. The catalyst behind this tension was the topic of slavery. By looking at a map showing the expansion of emancipation in the country, it is obvious that the Northern states have been getting rid of slavery since the 1700s, either by state constitution or by state law. In contrast, slavery had been a part of Southern economy and life. The incorporation of slavery into everyday life and it profitable results allowed for normalization of the institution to happen in …show more content…
In a letter written by Benjamin Rush, a white Philadelphian physician and reformer, he states that the population of blacks in the city of Philadelphia will eventually amount for more than two thousand individuals. This means that the population of free African Americans in Philadelphia is eventually becoming a faction with relevance in the city, which at the time was one of the most relevant metropolises in the nation. In another instance, in appeal made by the American Colonization Society to congress in 1820, it is stated “That the last census shows the number of free people of color of the United States, and their rapid increase”(ACS). Here, the ACS is recognizing the increasing relevance of the African American people in the political climate as they become a larger portion of the population. Despite the different settings, both statements recognize one thing as truth, that African Americans are slowly becoming a faction to be recognized and whose issues must be discussed and resolved as they begin to form a larger portion of the population. Some of those issues included heavily sentimental events that come as a result of slavery, which caused great pain for all African …show more content…
An instance that illustrates the empathy abolitionists felt for African Americans is Angelina Grimké’s Appeal to the Christian Women of the South. In it she describes several outcomes of slavery and compromises to work for society to “no longer tear husbands from their wives and children from their parents; no longer make men, women, and children work without wages, no longer maker their lives bitter in hard bondage, no longer to reduce American citizens to the abject condition of slave”(Grimké). In this case, Grimké urges the women in the South to embrace abolitionist beliefs and create a society based on equality. This mirrors the situation of the North, where people who have witnessed the pains and suffering of slavery narrated their experiences in order for their audience to become compassionate about slavery and oppose it once they learn its horrors. One the most notable example of this is the narration of Frederick Douglass’s experiences, which achieved to touch the lives and minds of many Northerners. In one of his narrations, Douglass states “Mr.Corey [the overseer] succeeded in breaking me. I was broken in body, soul, and spirit. My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished [...] the dark night of slavery closed upon me”(Douglass). In this instance, Douglass is describing the