1. The Divisive Politics of Slavery

3. Slavery as a Major Political Issue
Slavery was present in the U.S. from the beginning of the country
By the 1800s- Slavery was only still legal in states south of the Mason- Dixon line
Click HERE to view a video
on the Origins of Slavery

4. Slavery as a Major Political Issue
The policy of slavery had been dying in parts of the South, but the invention of the cotton gin & westward expansion revived slavery
Politicians sought to find the “perfect equilibrium” concerning slavery by doing three things:
Maintaining equal numbers of slave states & free states
This way, each side had an equal number of representatives in the Senate
Implementing a “Gag” rule which prevented discussion of slavery from
If you aren’t allowed to talk about something, you can’t argue about it!
Working out compromises on the issue of slavery in new territories and states

5. What is a Compromise?
an agreement or settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side giving something up in order to get something in return

6. Missouri Compromise of 1820
Missouri and Maine both applied to become states
Issue: Representatives from free states and slave states argued over whether slavery should be allowed in Missouri
Major points:
Maine entered the Union as a free state
Missouri entered the Union as a slave state
From then on, the 36th parallel would separate slave states from free states
Click HERE to view a video
on the Missouri Compromise!

7. Missouri Compromise Line

8. So the Missouri Compromise solved the issue of slavery in new territories, right?
OF COURSE NOT! The issue of slavery was not that simple. After the Mexican-American War, when California, New Mexico, and Utah all applied for statehood, the issue of slavery in new states arose… again.

9. (told you there would be more!)
Compromise of 1850
Major Points:
California admitted as a free state
Utah and New Mexico to use popular sovereignty
people vote whether or not their
territory/state should have slavery
The slave trade (sale of slaves) was banned in Washington, D.C. but slavery itself was still allowed
The Fugitive Slave Act (see next slide)
(told you there would be more!)

10. The Fugitive Slave Act This law was a part of the Compromise of 1850.
It said that escaped slaves had to be returned to their owner
It also set a penalty for helping a fugitive slave: $1,000 fine and 6 months in prison

11. So many tried to help slaves…
Many Northerners (especially abolitionists) did not like the Fugitive Slave Act
So many tried to help slaves…

12. The Underground Railroad
Free African-Americans and abolitionists set up a network of escape routes for slaves
Harriet Tubman, a former slave, was one of the most famous “conductors” of the Underground Railroad
Click HERE for a video about Harriet Tubman

13. Read an overview on the book by clicking HERE!
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Book written by an abolitionist named Harriet Beecher Stowe
Message: slavery was not just a political issue, it was a great moral issue as well
Tensions increased:
Northern abolitionists increased their protests after this book was published
Southerners called the book an attack on the South
Read an overview on the book by clicking HERE!

14. WRONG! I told you nothing is that simple!
So the Compromise of 1850 finally resolved the issue of slavery in new states right?
People were cool with Popular Sovereignty, Right?
WRONG! I told you nothing is that simple!

15. Pay attention! There’s no way everyone is going to be happy!
Kansas and Nebraska
Issue: Kansas and Nebraska wanted to become states. Nebraska is north of the 36th parallel Missouri Compromise line. Therefore, it was legally closed to slavery.
It was assumed that Nebraska would become a free state and Kansas would become a slave state
This would keep the balance in Congress and everyone would be happy right….?
Pay attention! There’s no way everyone is going to be happy!

16. The Kansas-Nebraska Act
Major Points:
Kansas and Nebraska would be added to the U.S.
The Missouri Compromise would be repealed
Popular Sovereignty would be used to determine slavery in these states, meaning people in these states would go vote yes or no to slavery.
After a bitter fight, lots of name-calling, and lots of arguing in Congress, this act finally became law. Now everyone was waiting to see what the citizens of these two new states would decide.

17. Kansas Chosen to be a Slave State
When it came time to vote, pro-slavery supporters from the neighboring slave state of Missouri poured into Kansas to vote illegally
Kansas became a slave state and anti- slavery supporters were furious about the illegal voters
Violence eventually erupted between pro-slavery and anti-slavery supporters in Kansas, leading to what became referred to as “Bleeding Kansas”

18. Reactions to Kansas-Nebraska Act: “The Caning”
Two Senators, Charles Sumner and Andrew P. Butler, did not get along over this particular issue
Sumner verbally attacked Butler in one of his impassioned speeches
The next day, Butler’s nephew, Congressman Preston Brooks, walked into the Senate chamber and beat Sumner in the head with his cane over and over
Sumner suffered brain damage and didn’t return to the Senate for 3 years. He was never the same after the caning

19. Nat Turner’s Rebellion
Nat Turner was a former slave & preacher
He wanted to free his people from slavery
He led slave rebellion in Virginia
Around 60 whites were killed, including men, women, & children

20. Results of Nat Turner’s Rebellion
Click HERE to view a video on Nat Turner’s Rebellion
Results of Nat Turner’s Rebellion
Turner & the other rebels were captured, tried, & executed
Southern states were so afraid of other rebellions happening, they passed a series of laws to strengthen slavery
Southern states blamed abolitionists for Nat Turner’s Rebellion

21. Interested in this historical event?
A Hollywood movie called “The Birth of a Nation” came out in 2016 that details the life of Nat Turner and the rebellion he led in Virginia. It’s really good. Watch the trailer HERE!
Stars: Nate Parker
Gabrielle Union

22. Nat Turner’s Rebellion wasn’t the only one…

23. Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) Dred Scott was a slave from Missouri
His owner took him north of the Missouri Compromise line and they lived in the free territory of Illinois and Wisconsin
They then returned to Missouri, where Scott’s owner died
Scott then sued for his freedom saying that because he had lived above the Missouri Compromise line, he should be freed

24. The Dred Scott Decision
The Supreme Court ruled that because Scott was a slave, he did not have the rights of a citizen
Basically, he could not sue anyone because he was seen as property, not a person with rights
The court also ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional because slaves were considered property, so forbidding slavery interfered with the fifth amendment (the right to own property)

25. John Brown
John Brown was an abolitionist who chose to end slavery using violence and death
He believed he was chosen by God to end slavery
In 1856 Brown and his sons hunted and attacked proslavery settlers in Kansas, killing five men
Brown then decided to begin a slave war in the east by seizing arms and munitions and leading slaves in rebellion

26. John Brown’s Raid 1859
John Brown led a group of men in a raid on the federal armory (where guns are stored) at Harper's Ferry, Va (in modern- day West Va) in hopes of arming slaves for a rebellion, but no slaves showed up because they were afraid it was a trap or that they could be killed

27. Click HERE to watch a video on John Brown’s Raid!
The raid failed and US Marines, led by Colonel Robert E. Lee, captured Brown. Eventually, Brown was convicted of treason and executed by hanging.
Click HERE to watch a video on John Brown’s Raid!

28. Opinions on John Brown’s Raid
Northerners came to respect what Brown had done, viewing him as a martyr (or someone who dies for a righteous cause) for the abolitionist movement.
Southerners were angered. Many in the South viewed Brown as a terrorist killer, a man that sought to incite a slave rebellion that would have led to the slaughter of hundreds of men, women, and children.
John Brown’s Raid and Nat Turner’s Rebellion nearly 20 years earlier, led southern states to begin to strengthen and train their state militias. Tensions between North and South continued to increase.