Narrator:William Lloyd Garrison had been waging war against slavery for 25 years, but tonight, victory seemed inconceivable. Third Assailant (Actor):Come on, let's take him down to the others. Many abolitionists lost hope in the president when they read reports of a meeting at the White House later that summer. "My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union," he announced in August of 1862, "and is not either to save or destroy slavery." From here, we can strike a blow against the slave masters. John Gooch It reveals how the movement shaped history by exposing the fatal flaw of a republic founded on liberty for some and bondage for others, setting the nation on a collision course. Matt Nicholas Try to recover him." There is "a class of professed abolitionists in Cincinnati," she wrote, but they are "unfashionable" and are "regarded as a species of moral mono-maniacs.". There was nothing that you had to do that there wasn't a slave who took care of it for you. Douglass loved England and Ireland and Scotland so much that he almost stayed there. Add highlights, virtual manipulatives, and more. Its words were few, and full of holy fire. State of Delaware/Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs And Harriet knew that if she could get that response from her readers, she didn't need to make arguments about slavery. John Stauffer, Historian:TheDred Scottdecision had the potential to legalize slavery everywhere in the United States. Joan D. Hedrick, Historian:It was a terrible disease. "MORAL" HAS TO DO WITH KNOWING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RIGHT AND WRONG AND DOING THE RIGHT THING. President Lincoln's education with and among the "white trash" of Kentucky was most unfortunate for his moral development, so that there seems to be nothing elevated and noble in his character. They pleaded with her to renounce it. John Pickett Northerners began sending clothing and food to the embattled free-soil settlers. Nina Kuhn And he's suddenly become famously depicted in art, wearing these sort of evening slippers with this long, peaceful old patriarch beard, and he's the abolitionist grandfather you wish you had. The writing ofUncle Tom's Cabinwould be Harriet's way of making her baby's short life mean something. They flew a blood-red flag on which was inscribed "Southern Rights." Not long after the passage of the Fugitive Slave Law, a runaway knocked on the door of a house in Brunswick, Maine. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks):I think I will. And it will serve no purpose. Representatives brandished revolvers in the halls of Congress, and the nation contemplated the imminent collapse of the Union. Your slave got it from his slave and gave it to you. L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah Purchased separately, all three cost $4.47. Jordan Swenson So perish all compromises with tyranny! It is so deeply flawed by the fact that human beings are property, that that Republic is doomed. On the subject of slavery, I do not wish to write with moderation. Northerners were flooding Congress with anti-slavery petitions. Charleston Library Society, Charleston, SC For three days, he was lost in a terrifying haze of fever and delirium. Harriet Beecher Stowe (Kate Lyn Sheil):It was God's will that the slave mothers, whose tears nobody regarded, should have with them a great company of weepers, that the Free States, who refused to listen when they were told of starvation, cold, and barbarous cruelty perpetrated on the slave, should have starvation, cold, privation, and barbarous cruelty doing its work among their own sons. Twenty-five? Joan D. Hedrick, Historian:In the Calvinist scheme of things, if God sent you suffering it was because he loved you and he wanted to teach you something. Coll Anderson M.P.S.E. What sort of bloodbath may flow from this?" And you can see, or we can hear in that speech that he gives, he just is truly like a boat in rough sea -- he's just rocking back and forth. Robert Chase Charles Williamson She had never before visited a slave state. He wrote that in the mornings he would come and find 10 or 11 fugitive slaves sitting on the doorstep waiting for him to arrive in his office so that he could help shuttle them to Canada. Garrison maintained his distance, but like every abolitionist, he wondered where all this upheaval would lead. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks, audio):With an earnest, aching heart, I have long looked for the realization of the hope of my people. Rebecca Rachael Frye Erica Armstrong Dunbar, Historian:It's an expos about, of course, the horrible treatment of slaves. Frederick Douglass named his abolitionist newspaper The North Starafter the icon followed by escaped slaves on their journeys to freedom. James Bradbury And he isn't punished, in part because Douglass standing up to Covey ruins, or at least jeopardizes, Covey's reputation. Performed by Jane Sakowski Bell George Latimer has been hunted down like a wild beast and imprisoned in Leverett Street jail. That left a hole -- I can't express it. The city's vibrant abolitionist community welcomed Douglass with open arms. The City of Petersburg-Department of Tourism, VA For example, on May 17, 1838, an abolitionist convention was held in Philadelphia's Pennsylvania Hall. Garrison was chosen to draw up the organization's charter. We must follow in our Savior's footsteps. I do. He sat silently at the back of the room as one speaker after another fired up the congregation with accounts of Lovejoy's death. Garrison, Douglass, and every other abolitionist had good reason to wonder whether Lincoln would ever sign the Emancipation Proclamation. Franky Garrison (Jacob Washburn):That's what everyone's saying. William Lloyd Garrison (Neal Huff):Put on the whole armor of God Narrator:Douglass's new life was fraught with danger. "Women's rights should not be your preoccupation," he told Angelina, "at least not until the slaves are free." My soul will be judged by the Lord, and not by you or anyone else. Anne Chapman I read your book, sir. I'd hoped to meet you long before this. Shane Robins It was the bloodstained gate, the entrance to the hell of slavery. William Lloyd Garrison (Neal Huff, audio):Our measures shall be the opposition of moral purity to moral corruption, the destruction of error by the potency of truth, the overthrow of prejudice by the power of love, and the abolition of slavery by the spirit of repentance. But by that time in the South, if you did you were taking a serious risk. Frederick Douglass was born in slavery, escaped to, most influential people of his time. Lynn BandoriaRosetta Douglass On the morning of October 21st, 1835, he made his way across town to deliver yet another anti-slavery lecture. It reveals how the movement shaped history by exposing the fatal flaw of a republic founded on liberty for some and bondage for others, setting the nation on a collision course. The Collection of the Madison County Historical Society, Oneida, NY Narrator:Garrison and the other abolitionists took up the call. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks):My mother? "You will receive a zip file which contains a multi-episode bundle of all 3 Video Response Worksheets and Keys in PDF format and access to all 3 TpT Digital Activities for studen. A student-led discussion prompts the free exchange of ideas and opinions that encourages wide . The organization remained, with Garrison at its head, but membership and income plummeted. John Charles Schneider, Special Effects Coordinators John Stauffer, Historian:Suddenly abolitionists are looking prophetic. Manisha Sinha, Historian:This is when the South sort of closes itself completely on the issue of slavery. founded a newspaper in 1821 to spread the abolitionist message. Jennifer Fleming The New Bedford Whaling Museum Are you getting the free resources, updates, and special offers we send out every week in our teacher newsletter? Let's negotiate. First Assailant (Actor):All right. Boston Athenaeum They opened the eyes of thousands and put their families . As those years of turmoil and hardship passed from living memory into myth, the Union itself came to seem ever more precious. Tom Trigo, Location Assistants Their destination was New Bedford, Massachusetts, a whaling town known as an abolitionist stronghold, with a large population of free blacks and runaway slaves. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks):You flatter me. Edward Covey (Jeffrey Wilhelm):Come on, boy. Amanda Bowens This Video Response Worksheet and Key is based on the PBS documentary series "American Experience - The Abolitionists - Episode 1: 1820s-1838.". Pro-slavery forces really have the upper hand. Carol Berkin, Historian:She was really concerned about the fate of their white masters. Thomas Petersen, Best Boy Electrics Jeanine Serralles Kareem Washington He had no job to return to. Mrs. Grimk (Crystal Cupp):Yes, Angelina, I have Christian feelings, and you are putting them to the test right now. By this time, a company of U.S. Marines had arrived, under the command of Colonel Robert E. Lee. Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, University of Rochester Library It is Henry's business. Owen McCuen Corruption is general, constitutional restraints are as cobwebs. Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, Hartford, CT How many slaves have you freed? Lois Brown Dewey Gartland This worksheet helps students to consider and debate three different strategies available to abolitionists in the 1850s as they worked to end slavery. Fotosearch It would be a ceremony unlike any other. Jeff Clanet Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks, audio):If we fail, we shall go down as we deserve to go down, as a warning to all other nations, which shall come after us. Adam Ferguson I have sought in my humble way to see in the distance the white flags of freedom, the time at which the cruel bondage of my people should end. It was all they needed. I will defend you with my life. This episode is approximately 53 minutes long. Carl Rochelle Narrator:George Latimer had arrived in Boston in the fall of 1842, only to be thrown in jail at the request of a Virginia planter. They seem now to be having had anticipated all of these things that are happening. The abolitionist movement was an organized effort to end the practice of slavery in the United States. A collection of American Experience's most literary content. Garrison was confronting some things that suggested that the future was gonna take a very different path than the past. A crowd estimated at 10,000 had gathered outside the Charleston Citadel. The petitions, the campaigns, the rallies, the marches, the meetings and resolutions and fundraisers, the mobs, the beatings -- all of the sacrifices had been suddenly dealt away by a handful of men in Washington. Cara White, Post Production He had lived among free blacks, had secretly learned to read, and there he had come to hope that slavery might not be eternal. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks, audio):Slaveholders have forfeited even the right to live. John Brown (T. Ryder Smith):I do, Douglass. Richard Brooks Incessant rains flooded the streets with sewage that spread the epidemic with terrifying speed. Though Garrison gave a rousing speech, Angelina's head was turned by a striking young theologian who ran most of the sessions. Film Delaware Charles Wood Woody Chapman Tom Dinardo If that happened, the balance of power in Washington would shift against the slave states. Lance Lemon When I strike, the bees will begin to swarm, and I shall want you to help hive them. Harriet Beecher Stowe (Kate Lyn Sheil, audio):It was at his dying bed, and at his grave, that I learned what a poor slave mother may feel when her child is torn away from her. Sound, Inc. Post Production Assistant Franky Garrison (Jacob Washburn):The fort's burning. Narrator:Covey never laid a hand on Douglass again. But all the same, Garrison's continued radicalism would be a great help in paving the way for a moderate, anti-slavery Republican. And let all the people say, "Amen. Artee Fabrics There are 21 questions in all. It's at this point that Kansas becomes known as "Bleeding Kansas. They've already been committing it, and now it's let loose the dogs of war. And this, Garrison felt, was a fitting occasion to print the last. That evening, Garrison collapsed. Special Collections, Fine Arts Library, Harvard University Simply, sir, we welcome and look upon you as our savior.". Pre-made digital activities. Douglas Sloan Barry Davis Paris Jones The mobs shattered every abolitionist assumption: that righteousness would triumph over evil, that their fellow Americans would listen to reason, that their Northern neighbors would support the abolitionist cause. It is my deep, solemn, deliberate conviction that this is a cause worth dying for. Narrator:Through 1847 and 1848, the question of the new territories festered. We'll give you $800. Cheryl Stark Students will learn about, NO PREP FEBRUARY BUNDLE - 12 Word Search Puzzle Worksheet Activities, mid-winter doldrums and always have something fun on hand to keep your kiddos busy and learning with this bundle of word search worksheets. By far the larger part of the slaves know as little of their age as horses know of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters to keep their slaves thus ignorant. American Experience | Official Site | PBS William Lloyd Garrison (Neal Huff, audio):My Dear Wife: I am going to try to write you a few lines with my own hand. Slave Auctioneer (Brian Elder):What will you give for this woman? American Experience: The Abolitionists - HistoryNet Like untold thousands of young men, he would never fully recover. Kevin Hershberger Michelle Muller Some lost hope and returned to their masters. Finally, near midnight, a messenger rushed onto the stage. Narrator:Then, on the 22nd of September, 1862, the newspapers brought astonishing news: Lincoln was promising to sign an Emancipation Proclamation on New Year's Day. Finally, blinded by his own blood, Sumner collapsed into the aisle, and lost consciousness. It must be crushed, it must be changed and reinvented. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks, audio):I not only liked, I loved this paper, and its editor. The best hope for your people is going to be outside of this country.". Narrator:But victory was nowhere in sight. How can Southerners look at that and say, "Oh these guys are good negotiating partners. The first leaders of the campaign, which took place from about 1830 to 1870, mimicked some. Their frustration was growing, and some of them were becoming more militant, but no one in power was listening. One good man could hold off a hundred soldiers. Lois Brown, Historian:You see the South rising to say, "This is yet another assault on our way of life. John Chimples Agitators. Erica Armstrong Dunbar, Historian:Many of the audience members had never, ever seen a slave, let alone been to the slave South. And that fight was starting to tear the country apart. Harriet Beecher Stowe made millions of Americans see slaverythrough the eyes of its victims. In the answer to that question lay the country's destiny. Vance Philips But very quickly in the Southern press, Garrison's name started to be associated with Nat Turner's revolt. Finally, John Brown stood up and raised his right hand. Gregory Patterson Chris Stewart Season 1 Episode 1Year: 2013 Subjects: Social Studies - History, U.S. History, World History Grades: Not Grade Specific Types: Activities, Homework $2.00 Word Document File John Brown (T. Ryder Smith):Well, sir: In one stroke we shall rouse this nation. Frederick and Anna clawed their way out of desperate poverty, and built a life for their growing family. Jay Fialkov Ingrid AlliAunt Hester Joan D. Hedrick, Historian:She was really fueled by the grief for her baby, but I suspect, too, perhaps, anger at a Calvinist God. Kwabena Ampofo Anthony Burns Norman Outlaw Reeling from his brush with death, Garrison retreated to the Connecticut countryside with his wife Helen, who was pregnant with their first child. And more and more and more as the war goes on, it's a realization that many, many Northerners come to share. For the first time in years, Douglass and Garrison appeared together in public, and Angelina Grimk reemerged after 20 years' absence to form a women's league. This viewing guide provides guiding questions for students for ALL, and an exit ticket to check for understanding. When he arrived he found the country embroiled in a presidential campaign unlike any other. J.R. Gettier & Associates, Stills Animation The louder she screamed, the harder he whipped -- and where the blood ran fastest, there he whipped longest. Narrator:On the morning of December 2nd, 1859, John Brown was driven from the jail, seated on his own coffin, to the gallows nearby. You can't be serious. It almost doubles the size. Pamela Peitzman The Making of The Abolitionists | American Experience | PBS William Lloyd Garrison (Neal Huff):What else did you hear? Mr. Frederick Douglass. They're going to be butchered, because that's Old Testament retribution. In 1837, for example, a mob attacked and killed the antislavery editor Elijah P. Lovejoy in Alton, Illinois. And suddenly he had an idea that he had a much expanded mission that did not simply speak to the question of slavery but spoke to the question of race. The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco He has a moral strength and clarity that cuts through the cant about slavery. The Collection of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County But Angelina found it almost unbearable -- an empire of sin. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks):Thank you, no, Mrs. Brown. / Should earth against my soul engage James Brewer Stewart, Historian:Garrison went to Baltimore and there boarded with free blacks. Whispered accounts of fugitives running from the slave catchers for nights on end, coming within sight of freedom, only to hear the hounds closing in. But that was nothing compared with Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks):It is never nothing. And I'm sure Angelina had the same response I had in reading, "You're terrible. Within 24 hours, half of Brown's men were dead or dying. My Charley -- my baby, so loving and sweet, so full of life and hope and strength -- now lies shrouded, pale, and cold in the room below. Sarah Grimk (Wendy Carter):My dear, look at you. What but the meanest selfishness stimulates this scheme? And in the spring of 1854 this wave of resistance came to a head, when the national battle over slavery suddenly focused on a solitary prisoner in Boston's city jail. George Bearer Garrison insisted that abolitionists renounce their government, that they withdraw from citizenship and refuse to vote. John Brown (T. Ryder Smith):I had hoped for more men, of course. Sherms Catering, Set Security Alexandra Hannibal, Stage Managers Only a few can now tell from actual experience something of the darkness and peril that brooded over the land when the anti-slavery movement was born. Jamieson Colgate Lois Brown, Historian:For Garrison, the work of abolition was about trying to make people come to a moment of conscience, and act accordingly. American Experience is a production of WGBH, which is solely responsible for its content. Library of Congress Garrison, like everybody, like Douglass, like all the people that have been in tremendous conflict with each other before the war, are in a sense reunited in the war for the Union. (Enter your ZIP code for information on American Experience events and screening in your area.). The law stipulated that any citizen, North or South, could be rounded up and forced to catch a suspected runaway. William Lloyd Garrison (Neal Huff, audio):The American Union was effected by a guilty compromise between the free and slave-holding states -- in other words, by incorporating the slave system into the government. Dorothea Swiac Narrator:On March 20th, 1852, a publisher released a book on a difficult subject by an unknown author. There, everything cruel and revolting is carefully concealed from strangers. Narrator:Shields Green and the other captives had already been sentenced to hang. Gordon Whiteway, Casting Associates He had avoided capture for months, until a letter home revealed his whereabouts. So why not the society too? Narrator:That winter, Douglass decided to reach out to a vast new audience. Elizabeth Purves Alisa Placas Frutman Narrator:In the spring of 1838, Angelina and Theodore's friends received a wedding invitation adorned with an engraving of a slave in chains. He had few friends or allies. And now, at last, John Brown was on his way to war, in Kansas. Kate Murray The slaughter of the first two years of war was but a prelude. There, Angelina discreetly followed reports of the abolitionist movement. The news of Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox came the day of Garrison's arrival. Tom Phillips Keyboards, Piano, Cello, Music This approach found a leader in William Lloyd Garrison, a young man from Massachusetts, who combined the heroism of a martyr with the crusading zeal of a demagogue. The postal campaign became a phenomenon. Manisha Sinha Shaun WoodlandWilliam Nell Timeka Scott Only 24 hours removed from slavery, Douglass found himself wandering among the dazzling wonders of Broadway. Narrator:Frederick Douglass and Angelina Grimk lived at opposite poles of one of the largest slave societies in history. Rather than backing down, Garrison upped the ante: Because the Constitution itself was corrupt, he charged, the Union was fatally flawed. Copying for more than one teacher, classroom, department, school, or school district is prohibited. Lincoln had kept his word. For three years Douglass shoveled coal, cut wood, and loaded ships, often working two shifts a day. Elizabeth Heslep, Digital Imaging Technicians Mrs. Grimk (Crystal Cupp):I ask you to leave him alone. This is from Season 1 Episode 2 Year: 2013, This download is made up of thirty questions, which will help your students to better comprehend, . William Kaffenberger Each Google Slide/PowerPoint is a stand-alone lesson, now embedded with primary source documents that frame each lesson. Frederick Douglass (Richard Brooks):I see now why you are such an effective advocate. Joseph Allen There was almost no one left to remember the Revolution. These children were robbed from me, and I stood desolate. Harriet Beecher Stowe (Kate Lyn Sheil, audio):My heart breaks at the cruelty and injustice our nation inflicts on the slave. John Stauffer, Historian:The role that abolitionists played in the build up to the Civil War was absolutely crucial. State Farm Property at Powhatan Correctional Center, State Farm, VA In a sweeping decision, Taney ruled that Congress had no authority to prevent the spread of slavery to the territories. The Abolitionists: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE | PBS LearningMedia Narrator:With the outbreak of war, abolitionists faced a daunting new challenge: convincing the president and skeptical Northerners that the conflict was not about preserving the old Union, but ending slavery. From his jail cell, Brown kept up a stream of correspondence and interviews, which were breathlessly reported throughout the North. With five dollars to their names, Frederick and Anna headed further north. Daniel Sheets This is disobedience to proper society, to the South, to the church. New Hampshire Historical Society Quizzes with auto-grading, and real-time student data. And abolitionists are accorded a newfound respect that they had never experienced before. Tony Horwitz, Author:Pottawatomie scares, but also enrages, pro-slavery forces who don't need much incitement to violence.