Unit 5 Vocabulary
Abolitionism Movement to end slavery Encouraged women to fight for the right to vote, because they participated in the movement Increased tension between the North and South Made slavery a significant issue in American politics
Nat Turner Led a slave rebellion in Virginia Increases tension between North and South Southerners increase restrictions on slaves and free blacks and Northerners say this proves slaves need to be free
William Lloyd Garrison Publisher of the Liberator His newspaper supported abolitionism and brought more people to the cause
Fredrick Douglass Former slave who becomes famous abolitionist writer and speaker He was an influential abolitionist because he experienced slavery himself
Grimke Sisters Southern women who were abolitionists What they said was important because they experienced how bad slavery was from the slave owner's perspective
States’ rights ideology Belief that the power of the states should be protected Wanted states to have more power than federal government Commonly held belief of southerners before the Civil War Sectionalism: putting regional interests over national interests
Nullification When a state refuses to recognize a federal law because it considers it unconstitutional South Carolina, encouraged by John C. Calhoun, wants to nullify the Tariff of 1828, Jackson forces them to back down The belief in nullification is associated with the belief in states’ rights
Missouri Compromise Tried to resolve conflict over slavery in the West by saying all states except Missouri north of the 36’30 line would be free states Only temporarily solved the conflict
Compromise of 1850 California is a free state Other territories would decide based upon popular sovereignty (a vote) Fugitive Slave Act (runaway slaves were returned to the South)
War with Mexico War between U.S. and Mexico from , in which the U.S. wins land from Mexico in the West New land meant new arguments over slavery in the West
Wilmot Proviso Banned slavery in territories won during the War with Mexico Divided Congress along regional lines
Kansas-Nebraska Act The territories of Kansas and Nebraska would vote to decide whether they would become slave or free states. The competition to gain votes resulted in violence between pro-slavery groups and abolitionists (Bleeding Kansas)
Popular Sovereignty A system where people vote to decide what to do on an issue Used to decide whether some territories would be free or slave
Dred Scott Decision A slave (Scott) sued for freedom. He had been brought into a free state, so he said he was no longer a slave. Court ruled that slaves were property and that owners had the right to keep them even in free states.
John Brown’s Raid John Brown raided the US Army arsenal in Harper’s Ferry, Virginia. He wanted to start a slave rebellion, but he was captured and hanged. Divides the North and South even more. North saw him as a martyr and the South said he was a terrorist.
Economic Disparity The North had a larger population, more railroads and more factories than the South This gave the North an advantage over the South and helped them win the Civil War