The Relationship between the Women Rights and Abolitionist Movement - Research Paper Example

Religion and reform 1820-1860: The Relationship between the Women Rights and Abolitionist Movement Introduction The period between 1820 and 1860 was a period of major reforms in the United States. It is during this period when there was there emergence of many issues such as the emergence of women rights movements, prohibition of slavery and the emergence of religious reforms. These reforms were fuelled by numerous societal factors such as urbanization, evangelical fervor, and lack of public participation in major events. Unattended issues led to the emergence of reformers such as the communitarians who wanted the government to address the issues, and individualists who articulated the visions that served as motivation for the reformers. The second awakening occurred during this period and was fuelled by the success of abolitionist movements. These movements aimed at addressing the ramifications of slavery and its subsequent eradication from the American society. Supported by the second awakening, the movements, which aimed at eliminating slavery and equal treatment of women in the American society, became successful (Digital History para.1-7). This essay is going to discuss the reforms that occurred during 1820-1860 and the relationship between women rights and abolitionist movements. Discussion Religion and Reform 1820-1860 The second awakening is one of the major religious reforms, which occurred during the aforementioned period. This religious revival was a reaction that was against the rational religious teachings, which dwelt on original sin and destiny. Individuals such as Timothy Dwight became famous for helping usher the awakening through campus revivals, which culminated in the emergence of evangelist preachers. In 1823, Charles Finney was able to spark numerous religious revivals in the city of New York whereby he appealed to the people by informing them that they would achieve salvation through hard work and faith. These religious dogmas led to the development of the Methodist and the Baptist religions. Religions such as 7th day Adventists was founded through claims that the end of the world was 1844, which made people receive salvation in large numbers. Hakim (2002) (pg43) indicates that Mormons was a religion, which was established in 1830 by Joseph Smith. The findings by Hakim (2002) (p.43) are furthered by Firkins (2000) ( p.88), whose book ‘Ralph Waldo Emerson’ highlights that transcendentalists such as Ralph W. Emerson and Henry Thoreau led people into believing in the inner self and God. This was through the experiments such as the one in which Thoreau lived in the forest for 24 months in an attempt to discover some truths concerning life. Numerous experiments were conducted as people wanted to create an ideal society. This is illuminated by the emergence of societies such as Fourier phalanxes, Shakers and New Harmony. According to Rogers (2010) (p.695), religious reforms came because of political beliefs, which had been formulated by individuals such as Andrew Jackson who established the Jacksonian democracy. The religious revivals led to the emergence of second great awakening in which changed religious beliefs across the American states. Political ideas evoked by the awakening led to the establishment of various institutions throughout the United States. These institutions were schools for deaf and blind, prisons, mental hospitals, which were established by the government through the relentless effort of humanitarian reformists. Social reform also occurred in an unprecedented scale. Reforms were made possible through the enactment of legislation concerning social issues such as the prohibition of alcohol in 1851. The awakening that occurred during 1820-1860 was responsible for the emergence of divisions within the society. These separations emerged from the separation of the moral beliefs of the inhabitants of the Western states. In the light of this, there emerged numerous activists and religious factions, which provided the people with leadership and created organized societies (Rogers p.695). According to Margo(1992) (pg174), in the 19th century, there emerged some form of economic reforms. These reforms were instigated by the numerous proposals aimed at creating new institutions. In the light of this, there was the erection of public facilities such as mental hospitals, prisons, schools and hospitals. These institutions required funding from the government. The proposed public schools were to be established through support from taxes. Similarly, agricultural reforms emerged through the artistic movements. Through arts and literature, new ideas led to the formation of a new culture in the United States. This was through the artistic expression of various aspects of the society such as chase for wealth. Margo(1992) (pg173-175), further indicates that trascendalists such as Ralph W. Emerson started questioning the doctrines of churches that had been established in the United States. They argued that the essence of God required an individualistic approach Through geographical expansion and economic development, social rules and traditional institutions were weakened. This weakening of traditional institutions led to the rise of individualism in which people started caring for themselves. Due to the rise of individualism, the bond that kept most of the Americans together suffered a major blow. According to Firkins (2000) ( pg398), Ralph W. Emerson played a major role in the emancipation individuals from the existing traditions, by being behind transcendentalism. Painter (2009) ( pg980) replicates these findings by indicating that Emerson preached through writings and lectures in which his lectures were avenues for instigating discussions and spreading information. Furthermore, Emerson transformed American literature by urging writer to celebrate individual’s freedom and democracy without basing their inspiration from human experiences. Women Rights in the 1820-1860 In his Journal on population studies, Eblen (1972) (p.282) informs us that before 1820-1860, women could neither vote nor hold office in any of the states in America. Moreover, women could not access higher education and where excluded from major professional occupations. The American law was partly to blame for the women’s predicament as it complied with the societal principle that a woman had no identity legally apart from the identity of the husband. Moreover, the woman could not sue, make contracts, or own property. In addition, the woman could not control her wages or maintain the custody of the children following a divorce or a separation. However, the onset of 1820 saw numerous economic and social changes, which included a large-scale development of the market economy and a subsequent decline in birthrate. The aforementioned social and economic changes led to increased opportunities for employment of women. Moreover, this period saw the establishment of a college for women and the admission of women to men’s colleges. Women started postponing marriages and some failed to get married at all. Since the women perceived marriage as a form of bondage, the unmarried women ignored social roles and were able to secure employment as schoolteachers and ‘mill girls’. Moreover, some of the women gained prominence as church leaders, teachers, editors and novelists (Copeland p.118). According to Hakim (2002) (p.123), women entered the public domain, which had belonged to men after joining religious revivals and movements that sought reforms. These developments raised topics in gender issues whereby the family authority, marriage and sexual behavior entered the lime light. In 1948, women started advocating for their rights and calling for complete equality between men and women. Before the genesis of women movements, women had lived in a sphere that was separate from the one occupied by men. Women were confined in their homes and had nothing to do in the business and political realms. However, women achieved major feats as they took central role in the second awakening. The religious activities in the second awakening gave them authority in their homesteads and in matters concerning reproduction and enhanced their position as human beings, which made them to establish and lead societies concerned with reforms. Other women advocated for women rights by breaking down barriers and forging newer opportunities for women during this period. Frances Wright was a lecturer and a reformer who came up with radical views concerning birth control. Moreover, this woman is accredited with the formulation of divorce laws and rights for women in marriage. Elizabeth Blackwell achieved a major feat during this period by becoming the first woman in America to receive a medical degree. Among the numerous women that emerged during this period to voice their sentiments and advocated for revival was Phoebe Palmer who was a preacher famous for igniting religious ardor amongst myriads of Canadians and Americans. Women such as Dorothea Dix were involved in the undertaking of many reforms by establishing charity schools. Dix made major impacts as she improved schooling, and instigated the improvement of prisons and expansion of hospitals (Hakim p58). Abolitionist Movement during 1820-1860 During the aforementioned period, abolitionists who possessed government offices were restricted by the prevailing rules in the senate and in the house. They could only express their anti-slavery views through the codes that were allowed by the government. Moreover, the politicians had transformed the issue of slavery from a moral issue to an institutional issue and removed any aspects of humanity from the issue. The rigidity of the government in addressing issues related to slavery led to a move to by the abolitionist to keep the government out of the matter (Digital History para6). The abolitionist movement began in the south of USA as a southern movement whose success frightened the power structure in the south. These threats led to the movements being vetoed in the south. This happened when slave codes were being revised. The restriction of abolitionist movements in the south led to shifting of foci towards the north. The organization of abolition movements notwithstanding the vehement opposition from the senate led to a large following of the abolitionist society, which had 150, 000 members by 1840. The major areas in which the abolitionist movements had been established were Ohio and Midwest, New York and the New England (Digital History para7). In the Journal, ‘Ralph Waldo Emerson's Saxons’, Painter (2009) ( p.984) claims that radical abolitionists were among the major abolitionists in 1820-1860. Furthermore, according to Painter (2009) (p.984), evangelicals were part of abolitionist movement. Theodore Weld was among the evangelicals who were able to join the abolitionist movement. Theodore was prevented from preaching on abolition in Ohio where he had attended a theological seminary, which made him leave the region and establish a college where he trained people to preach the gospel of abolition. Through his efforts and those of his converts, abolition became the cause of a great awakening. Among his major tenets were that slavery was a sin. Moreover, Weld articulated the ramifications of slavery and located the censure of slavery in the Holy Bible. Furthermore, he highlighted that it was against God’s will to engage in slavery. Subsequently, there was the conversion of religious movements into movements against abolition During the 19th century, black leaders called for social uplift. These leaders highlighted that through education, hard work and moral discipline, the black community would gain the much-required respect. This respect was needed for this community to have the rights that were enjoyed by the white community. In order to achieve their objectives, the black leaders founded self-help groups, newspapers, schools and churches. However, their achievements infuriated the whites who attacked the blacks. The attacks from the whites led to a response in 1829 by David Walker, who was a free black in which he published a pamphlet that appealed to the whites to free the black slaves, failure to which they would revolt. The devotion to abolish slave trade is elucidated through the convention that was held in 1830 by Walker and several members from the black community. However, this move did not yield fruits as the delegates failed to support Walkers calls and asked for legal petitions from the blacks. Consequently, the blacks conducted a revolt in 1831 dubbed Turners rebellion in which the leader, Turner, with the help of other slaves engineered an uprising that saw 55 whites dead. In retaliation, white militia annihilated the perpetrators of this act (Copeland p.123). Copeland (2003) (p123) adds that during the same year, there was an assembly in Virginia. This assembly led to the formation of a rebellion and a debate on a bill that would see the gradual emancipation of slaves. However, delegates in the south failed to yield to these demands and instead toughened the existing slave codes. These developments came at a time when evangelical Christians were launching numerous crusades to demolish slavery. Baptists, Methodists and Quakers were on the frontline as they had already set their slaves free. Moreover, they advocated for the full emancipation of all slaves. Copeland replicates Eblen (1972) (p.274) claims that later in 1831, radical Christians demanded that all slaves be emancipated. According to Copeland( 2003) (p.131), the most famous abolitionist of this era was William Garrison who founded the liberator, which was a newspaper that demanded abolition of slavery with no compensation for slave masters. Garrison also founded a society against slavery through the help of other abolitionists. He emphasized on natural rights and highlighted how these rights were violated in slavery. Throughout his campaign on abolition, Garrison did not compromise with slave owners Female abolitionists had also emerged during this time in which they established societies concerned with the campaigns against slavery. In order to succeed in their endeavors, the abolitionists formulated an iterative process whose first part was to appeal to Americans who were deeply religious. This appeal was achieved in 1837 through the publishing of a document that derived passages from the bible, which were against slavery. The second part of the process was the use of African Americans who had fled slavery. Escaped slaves like Harriet Tubman were instrumental as they returned to the south to aid the escape of other slaves. White abolitionists intervened in the move wherein they helped the blacks to form mobs who seized slaves who had been recaptured and drove away their chasers. The third part of the process entailed appealing to the national legislators and the slaves to abolition slavery. This was done in 1835 whereby the American Society against slavery sent numerous petitions that demanded for immediate end of slavery. The aforementioned process attracted many proprietors and religious farmers to engage in abolitionism (Rogers p.698). The Relationship between Women Rights and Abolitionist Movements Despite the numerous improvements in women status during the first half of the 19th century, women had not achieved the economical and political status enjoyed by men. Among the numerous women rights activists that emerged during this period with the intent of addressing the problems that women faced were Sarah Hale and Catherine Beecher who expanded women’s roles through their moral influence. Particularly, Beecher was one of the prominent educators and women right activists in the period between 1820 and 1860. She was a woman bestowed with many talents and awesome leadership skills. Her charisma saw her spearhead a campaign to inform the boards of various schools that women could become schoolteachers. The two women engaged in a tireless endeavor to ensure that women received education and to ensure that slavery was eradicated. Moreover, they voiced women grievances such as low wages, physical hardships and the minimization of the intellectual aspirations of women. Although these women never advocated for women to achieve full rights, they were transitional figures in the genesis of feminism. In addition, the aforementioned women had an important role in the abolitionist movement (Digital History para7). Following the enlightenment of many women, women were able to address various ills that faced the American society, which included slavery. The education of many women led to the emergence of female lecturers who were able to lecture to audiences that comprised of men and women leading to formation of women rights movements. By mid-1830, numerous antislavery societies, whose majority of the members were women were created. Moreover, women abolitionists circulated petitions, edited abolitionist tracts and organized convections that were antislavery (Hakim p.72). These achievements by women shows that women had moved into a sphere assigned by providence and were no longer satisfied with circumscribed limits, which had encircled them through corrupt customs and perverted appliance of religious doctrines. Women assumed active roles in movements that called for the abolition of slavery. This is because the women had been aware of horrors faced by slave women such as being subjected to rape by their slave masters. Notwithstanding the opposition from men who insisted that, women were not supposed to take any public role, women refused to sit back and face the wrath of slavery. Moreover, the women compared their traditional gender roles with domestic enslavement of women (Digital History para2). Women like Angelina and Sarah Grimke who were from a wealthy slaveholding family, overcame restrictions to expand women’s achievements. Through their numerous lectures and writings that sought to address the ramifications of slavery (Eblen pg273 ). These moves infuriated church leaders to appoint of attempting to stop women from speaking in churches. However, Sarah Grimke was not cowed by their attempts as she went on to articulate feminist principles, which denounced numerous injustices such as lower pay and the denial of educational opportunities to women. Moreover, her works outrageously expressed that women were not supposed to be treated differently from men (Digital History para6). Women who had been denied rights to serve as delegates in the anti slavery conventions such as Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Stanton were able to organize conventions in 1848, which talked about women rights and the abolition of slave trade. Following these conventions, women were able to gain voting rights. Numerous female reformers helped address discrimination and succeeded in adopting laws concerning the property of married women in most states. These laws granted women who were married, control over their property and income. Particularly, a law passed in New York in 1860 enabled women to have the custody of children. Advocates for equality included black women like Sojourner Truth who was born as a slave and later achieved fame for preaching against denial of women rights and against slavery. Following the women movements, there emerged individuals who started believing in a perfect society with a perfect political order. These individuals founded utopian communities, which were experimental societies that provided blue prints for ideal societies. An example of these societies was the Shakers in which males and females were regarded as equals (Hakim p.10). Hakim(2002) (p.59) highlights that despite numerous calls for abolition of slavery, there was vehement opposition from the whites, which culminated into bloody internal conflicts. Moreover, the clergymen who were conservative, as they disliked the roles that had been assumed by abolitionist women impeded the emancipation of slaves. The textile manufacturers and merchants in the north supported slavery as slaves were providing them with raw materials. The workers in the north feared that freed blacks would take their jobs by working for less. Moreover, most of the whites were opposed to amalgamation, which was a reference to intermarriage and racial mixing of whites and blacks. Conclusion In summary, there were major reforms that occurred during the aforementioned period. These reforms occurred in a multifaceted manner as they were experienced in the political, social and economic domains. The second awakening, which remains a major historical event that changed the face of religion in America, occurred during this period. This paper has highlighted the formation of many religions, which occurred because of the famous second awakening. Moreover, the emergence of women rights, and the prohibition of slavery through the emergence of abolitionist movements has been articulated. Given the central role that was undertaken by women in addressing the issue of slavery, there existed relationship between the achievement of women rights and abolitionist movement. Moreover, it was through the attainment of rights that women were able to take a role in the political and social realms. Through this, they were able to address the ramifications of slavery among other ills that were prevalent in the American society. Works Cited Copeland, David A. The Antebellum Era: Primary Documents on Events from 1820 to 1860. Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003. Print Digital History. “Pre-Civil War Reform.” n.d. Web. 27 April 2012. Eblen, Jack E. "Growth of the Black Population in ante bellum America, 1820-1860." Population studies 49.2 (1972): 273-289. Print Firkins, Oscar W. Ralph Waldo Emerson. New York: Courier Dover Publications, 2000. Print Hakim, Joy. A History of US: Book 5: Liberty for All? 1820-1860. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002. Print Margo, Robert A. "Wages and Prices during the Antebellum Period:A Survey and New Evidence." January 1992. Web. 28 April 2012. Painter, Nell Irvin. "Ralph Waldo Emerson's Saxons." The Journal of American History 95.4 (2009): 977-985. Print Rogers, Richard Lee. "The Urban Threshold and the Second Great Awakening: Revivalism in New York State,1825–1835." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 49.4 (2010): 694–709. Print Read More