The Struggle To Abolish Slavery

From the early 1830’s until the end of the Civil War in 1865, African American writers were able to publish literature that positively impacted many Americans’ viewpoint regarding slavery. Many people believe that these writings were the main impetus behind the movement to abolish slavery. During this time the slave narrative evolved, becoming an important voice for not only the slaves themselves, but also for the entire abolitionist movement.
Many African American authors worked to end slavery alongside their white abolitionist counterparts; people such as John Brown, Johns Hopkins, Harriet Beecher Stowe and Abraham Lincoln. One such author was Frederick Douglass, who was a slave himself in the early years of his youth (MacKethan). After

As a gathering place and a place of refuge, the black churches fostered an ongoing atmosphere of discontent among the slaves. These churches, while providing comfort and support, also gave slaves a forum in which to discuss their circumstances and plan action against them. As they gained their freedom, some of the slave narrators went back to their native countries by choice, but many of them chose to stay in America to lend support to the anti-slavery movement. Many white abolitionists like William Lloyd Garrison also encouraged the slaves, who managed to escape, to tell their stories (Nelson) Garrison who was the publisher of the anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator, and co-founder of the Anti-Slavery Society, is someone often considered to be a radical in the abolitionist movement. Garrison believed in equality so he called for an immediate end to slavery. He believed that free African Americans could incorporate themselves into a white society and be successful. This thinking put him at odds with abolitionists who doubted the notion of racial equality, and who sought to gradually end

While there were other pieces of literature written during this time which also reflected the ideas shared in the slave narratives, none were quite as powerful. Many times the white abolitionists had to write some of the narratives because the former slaves did not have the ability to read or write, and if they did they were sometimes unable to write for the predominantly white audience. Moreover, they were also able to verify the authenticity of the accounts of these slaves, which was a strong reason why the public was convinced that slavery should be wiped out completely (Nelson). Such joint efforts by white abolitionists and former slaves brought forth awareness within the general population and garnered more support for the abolitionist movement. The impact of this combined effort was often reflected in the general