Most histories of American abolitionism begin just before the Civil War, during the Antebellum period. But the movement to end chattel slavery in America began long before the United States was a nation.
Manisha Sinha, a professor of history at the University of Connecticut and author of the award-winning book The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition, takes us through the early American origins of the the abolition movement.
About the Show
Ben Franklin’s World is a podcast about early American history.
It is a show for people who love history and for those who want to know more about the historical people and events that have impacted and shaped our present-day world.
Each episode features a conversation with a historian who helps us shed light on important people and events in early American history.
Episode Summary
Manisha Sinha, the Draper Chair of American History at the University of Connecticut and author of the award-winning book The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition, takes us through the early American origins of the the abolition movement.
During our exploration, Manisha reveals the origins of the American abolition movement; How the Age of Revolutions contributed to the early abolition movement and gave it momentum; And how events like the Haitian Revolution and the Constitutional Convention of 1787 impacted the abolition movement.
What You’ll Discover
- The history of American abolitionism
- Exploring abolitionism as a social movement
- The origins of abolitionism
- Early African abolitionists
- Circulation of early anti-slavery tracts
- The Age of Revolutions and its contribution to early abolitionism
- The founders and the paradox of slavery
- Freedom petitions and African American abolitionism
- The Haitian Revolution and its impact on American abolitionism
- The long period of emancipation in the northern United States
- Differences between abolition and emancipation
- Compromises made at the Constitutional Convention of 1787
- Differences between abolitionist mobilization in northern versus southern states
- How Manisha researched and wrote her comprehensive book
Links to People, Places, and Publications
- Manisha Sinha
- Manisha’s UConn webpage
- The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition
- The Counterrevolution of Slavery: Politics and Ideology in Antebellum South Carolina
- Edmund Morgan, American Slavery, American Freedom
- Eric Foner, Reconstruction Updated Edition: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877
- New York Public Library
- New-York Historical Society
- Library of Congress
- The Library Company of Philadelphia
- Boston Public Library
- American Antiquarian Society
- Accessible Archives
Sponsor Links
Complementary Episodes
- Episode 055: Robb Haberman, John Jay: Forgotten Founder
- Episode 096: Nicholas Guyatt, The Origins of Racial Segregation in the United States
- Episode 124: James Alexander Dun, Making the Haitian Revolution in Early America
- Episode 127: Caroline Winterer, American Enlightenments
- Episode 135: Julie Holcomb, Moral Commerce
- Episode 137: Erica Dunbar, The Washingtons’ Runaway Slave Ona Judge
Time Warp Question
In your opinion, what might have happened if African Americans had not had the ability to participate in the abolition movement? How would the absence of African American participation in abolitionism have altered the movement?
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