Examining American Racial Slavery and its Legacies

Women’s Impact: 19th Century Anti-Slavery Activism - Tim Reed

The 19^th century was the beginning of change for Black Americans. The Civil War and the Reconstruction Era were major events which transformed enslaved people into free citizens of the United States. But it was the actions of abolitionists before these events that enabled this change to American society[1]. Anti-slavery activists like Peter Bestes and the three other men who petitioned for the freedom of slaves in Massachusetts and, influencers like Frederick Douglass, and William Lloyd Garrison were all males who either made change through their writings, or dominated the public view with their progressive ideas and thoughts. One set of participants in the abolitionist movement that have received less attention were women[2].

            Women lacked rights and power in the19^th-century United States. Women expanded upon their education and tried to expand upon their domestic responsibilities, but the gender structure that persisted in the United States during this time continued to suppress these efforts[3]. The primary responsibility of women during this time was to take care of the house and family, and their participation in political affairs was considered unneeded, especially because during this time it was considered improper for a woman to address a room with a male audience[4]. The suppression and societal expectations of women dominated their lives throughout the 19^th century, but these restrictions did not stop them from participating in social and political causes.

Women’s participation within antebellum anti-slavery societies and conventions showed the degree of dedication that female activists felt towards the abolitionist movement. The steps these women were willing to take to achieve liberty for the enslaved despite the restrictions on their own social liberty demonstrates the high values these women possessed towards freedom. 

The Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women in Philadelphia in 1838 was a four-day meeting of women who shared their ideas concerning the abolition of slavery and the steps they would take to achieve that goal[5]. This convention had the structure and professionalism of any other political organization during this time. This convention consisted of a hierarchy of officials like the President of the Convention, Mary Parker of Boston, ten Vice Presidents, four Secretaries, a Treasurer, and hundreds of speakers and participants[6]. The democratic structure of this convention for the sharing of diverse perspectives and the adoption of different actions in pursuit of their communal cause. Throughout the four days the women advocated for petitions to end slavery, read letters from other anti-slavery societies across the northern states, and discussed reducing their use of slave-made products[7]. The Philadelphia Convention was a means for Black and White women to congregate, to get support for ending slavery, and to share the ideas that society continued to shut down.

These anti-slavery conventions were effective ways to strengthen the abolition movement and to create more unified female movements towards ending slavery, but these women risked their lives fighting for this cause. Even in the North, racism and the fight for slavery continued for Whites. The rise of anti-slavery communities and the continued discussion of abolishing slavery shot fear throughout White Americans who saw Black freedom as harmful to their own. This fear was displayed through violent acts towards free Blacks and those who supported Black rights[8]. This violence is seen through the burning of Pennsylvania Hall[9]. The Hall was burned down on the night of May 17^th, 1838; the night before the Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women’s last meeting[10]. This was a means to disrupt and put an end to not only the steps being taken to abolish slavery, but to women’s involvement in social policies. The persistence of these women was demonstrated here because despite these violent acts, these women decided to try to meet at Temperance Hall. When they were locked out, they met at a school classroom[11]. The perseverance against the acts of violence and determination to continue these meetings demonstrated the dedication that these women implemented in their fight to end slavery.

A member of the Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women that showed this commitment to the movement was Sarah Purvis[12]. Sarah Purvis was the daughter of James and Charlotte Forten and the sister of Harriet and Margaretta Forten[13]. The Forten-Purvis family shows what a Black, progressive, and abolitionist family looked like. James Forten was a Black Revolutionary War veteran and equal rights activist, for both Blacks and women[14]. The Forten daughters attended Anti-Slavery meetings from a young age with their parents and grew up in an environment that pushed female excellence and equal rights. The family would hold gatherings for activists like William Lloyd Garrison, where they would be extremely gracious hosts so that they could push their opinions and agenda on these influential people[15]. Lloyd Garrison once said that the Forten family’s hospitality demonstrated “what makes the human character worthy of admiration and praise”[16]. The Forten girls’ hosting allowed for them to convince their guests of their ideas, but they would also write for reformer publications, lobby for Black activism, and raise money for Black fugitives seeking freedom[17]. The money raised, education of the girls, and ability to influence people was what made the Forten daughters the ideal female Black activists in a time where women had little ability to make change.

Although it may be argued that the emancipation of slaves would have occurred without the participation of women in these conventions and actions, the participation of women greatly sped up this process. For example, from 1840 to the Civil War the Anti-Slavery Convention raised $32,000 and in 1842 they helped escort 46 fugitive slaves to the Canadian border[18]. The Sisters of the Black Panther party in 1969 said that a revolution cannot be successful with just men because “women are the other half”[19]. Without the assistance of women through fairs, petitioning, poems, household gatherings, and more, the abolitionist movement would not have been as widespread as it was when the Civil War occurred. The intangible effects and the physical effects of women throughout the early abolitionist movement cannot be denied or underappreciated due to the inevitability of freedom.

It would take until the end of the century for the women’s rights movement to get real traction and create change in women’s lives. Their willingness to fight for the freedom of their enslaved countrymen demonstrates the high moral standards of these women towards this social issue, but the continued political representation that Black men gained after these movements showed the racist undertones and lack of political morals these women felt towards Black men[20]. Although abolitionist women celebrated the freedom of the enslaved, they felt anger and a lack of respect when it came to voting rights[21]. The sacrifices that women made to push for the 13^th Amendment unknowingly pushed towards the ratification of the 15^th Amendment before any rulings were considered towards women’s voting rights. The belief that Black slaves should be freed was the extent of their freedom orientated activism. The push for voting rights before theirs was never their intention, rather like most of the white population, they believed that Black freedmen should be held to a lower class than them, so when Black men could now vote they felt as if they were the lowest class of citizen in the United States now[22]. Even though these women fought and faced adversity to abolish slavery, they still had a lack of respect towards Black Americans and believed that women’s political representation was deserved before Black representation.

The 19^th century showed some of the greatest changes for Black Americans at the time. Women’s participation in abolitionist movements had a great deal to do with that. Through anti-slavery societies and conventions, women were able to spread their ideas and do their part in the movement. Although these women disagreed with the political representation of Black men that followed the 13^th Amendment, their actions and efforts were a substantial part of the 19^th century anti-slavery movements and the liberation of Black slaves. Women are the other half of society, without their participation in social and political matters, change would and could never occur in the United States.

Bibliography

Bestes, Peter et al. to Massachusetts Legislature, April 20^th, 1773

Black Panther Party, “Panther Sisters on Women’s Liberation” (1969)

Dr. Bollettino, Maria, “Slavery and the Civil War,” Slavery, Race, and Rights, (Lecture, Framingham State University).

Brown, Ira. “Am I Not A Woman and A Sister?” The Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women, 1837-1839. Pennsylvania Historical Association, 1983.

Douglass, Frederick, “Frederick Douglass On Woman Suffrage” (speech, 1888)

Lincoln, Abraham, “Emancipation Proclamation” (January 1, 1863).

Sklar, Kathyrn Kish. Women’s Rights Emerges within the Antislavery Movement 1830-1870. New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2000.

Stevenson, Louis, “Little Women? The Female Mind at Work in Antebellum America,” History Today 45, no. 3 (March 1995): 26-31.

Stone, Lucy. Proceedings of the Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women, Held In Philadelphia. May 15^th, 16^th, 17^th, and 18^th, 1838. Merrihew and Gunn, 1838.

Sumler-Lewis, Janice. “The Forten-Purvis Women of Philadelphia and the American Anti-Slavery Crusade,” The Journal of Negro History 66, no. 4 (Winter 1981-1982): 281-288.

U.S. Const. amend. XIII, § 1

U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1

U.S. Const. amend. XV, § 1