For African American slaves, resistance was extraordinarily difficult. Some
slaves carried out courageous acts of quiet resistance, such as gathering in
groups when forbidden by law or teaching one another to read. Some slaves rose
up in open rebellion. Thousands ran to freedom in the North and West.
Many African Americans who had escaped slavery, or who had been born free,
fought slavery on a larger scale. Let’s take a look at some of the ways African
Americans took part in the fight against slavery.
Speaking and Writing Against Slavery
Both black and white abolitionists spoke out against slavery in speeches,
sermons, articles, books, and pamphlets. In 1829, David Walker, an African
American, published a pamphlet called
Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the
World. Walker passionately attacked prejudice and the cruel injustice
of slavery. Referring to whites, he wrote:
They think because they
hold us in their infernal chains of slavery, that we wish to be white, or of
their color—but they are dreadfully deceived—we wish to be just as it pleased
our Creator to have made us, and no avaricious and unmerciful wretches, have
any business to make slaves of, or hold us in slavery. How would they like for
us to make slaves of, and hold them in cruel slavery, and murder them as they
do us?
Walker urged slaves to fight for their own
freedom. His fierce attack on slavery alarmed authorities in the South.
Officials in several states responded by forbidding anyone from distributing
abolitionist literature.
Other abolitionists sought peaceful ways to end slavery. In the 1830s,
organizations such as the American Anti-Slavery Society were created to promote
emancipation. One of the society’s tactics was to send speakers throughout the
North to talk about the evils of slavery. Some speakers were former slaves who
spoke of their experiences. Others were professional public speakers.
Charles Lenox Remond, the son of free parents in Massachusetts, was the first
African American public speaker for the society. A talented speaker, Remond
traveled all over the North, arguing for immediate emancipation of the slaves.
When he wasn’t able to find a meetinghouse, he simply stopped on the street and
gathered a crowd. This was a dangerous thing to do. Even in the North, his
views sometimes provoked violence.
Many other African Americans supported emancipation through their writings.
Jermain Wesley Loguen, a former slave, published articles in a newspaper called
the
Weekly Anglo-African. Frederick Douglass ran a newspaper called
the
North Star. He also wrote an influential book called
Life and
Times of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave. Other first-person
accounts of slavery were dictated to abolitionists. The American Anti-Slavery
Society used mass mailings to distribute these accounts.
Taking Direct Action: The Underground Railroad
Both black and white abolitionists were active in the Underground Railroad. As
you have learned, the “railroad” was a secret network of people who helped
runaway slaves escape to freedom. Robert Purvis, an African American
abolitionist, was extremely important to the success of the Underground
Railroad.
Purvis was born in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1810. His father was a
successful white cotton merchant. His mother was part African American. When
Purvis was nine, his parents brought him and his two brothers north to
Philadelphia. There he attended the Pennsylvania Abolition Society’s school.
When Purvis was 16, his father died, leaving him a fortune. Purvis used his
wealth to further the cause of freedom for African Americans. He was a
cofounder of the American Anti-Slavery Society. He also gave both money and
time to help runaway slaves.
In 1831, Purvis married Harriet Forten, the daughter of an African American
businessman and abolitionist. Together they threw themselves into the
antislavery struggle. Their home was a well-known stop on the Underground
Railroad. A trapdoor in their house concealed a secret room where runaway
slaves could hide. They helped thousands of slaves escape to freedom.
Petitioning Congress
Abolitionists, including African Americans, also fought slavery by sending
petitions to Congress. A petition is a document signed by a large number of
people asking for some action to be taken.
In 1836, the House of Representatives voted a “gag rule” to prevent all
consideration of slavery in Congress. Under the rule, Congress set aside all
petitions and letters on the subject of slavery for the indefinite future.
The American Anti-Slavery Society fought the rule with a flood of petitions. By
1838, abolitionists had overwhelmed Congress with petitions including more than
400,000 signatures. Many of the petitioners were African Americans.
Abolitionists argued that the gag rule violated their First Amendment right to
petition their elected representatives.
The petitioners found a champion in former president and Massachusetts
representative John Quincy Adams. Adams led the fight against the gag rule in
Congress. He finally defeated it in 1844.
Seeking Freedom from Courts
Many African Americans looked to the courts to grant their freedom. In St.
Louis, Missouri, African Americans filed nearly 300 “freedom lawsuits” between
1814 and 1860.
The case of “Winny versus Phoebe Whitesides” was similar to many of the
lawsuits filed during this time. Winny was the slave of Phoebe Whitesides.
Winny based her claim to freedom on the fact that Whitesides had taken her and
her children to live in Illinois, a free state, before coming to Missouri, a
slave state. The jury agreed and declared Winny and her children free persons.
The most well-known freedom lawsuit was the Dred Scott case. Like Winny, Dred
Scott claimed he should be free because he had lived in a free state. A St.
Louis court granted Scott his freedom. The U.S. Supreme Court, however,
overruled this decision in 1857. The Court held that the Constitution did not
recognize slaves as citizens. Consequently, the Court said, Scott had no right
to bring a legal case. The Dred Scott case fueled people’s anger over slavery
and helped pave the way for the Civil War.
Enrichment Activity
Create an illustrated timeline that tells the story of African American
resistance to slavery. Include no fewer than five key dates on the timeline. In
your captions and illustrations, include at least five people or organizations
discussed in this essay.
