ipl-logo

Antislavery Convention Dbq Analysis

670 Words3 Pages

The antislavery convention of American Women in New York City in May 1837 was one of several conventions that were held, addressing the concept of abolition. During this time period, there were several groups of men and women who were interested in getting rid of the institution of slavery, driven by different motives. Document 5, of Chapter 6, contains several of the resolutions established by the women attending the convention regarding the ideas of slavery as a moral wrong, and that people were obligated to perform their duty in helping others achieve their freedom. The women attending the convention, including Angelina Grimké, Sarah Grimké, Mary Cox, Lydia Child, Martha Storrs and many others, were allowed to participate in this convention …show more content…

One of the resolutions given by Angelina Grimké expressed the new public freedom that women were given, stating, “RESOLVED, That as certain rights and duties are common to all moral beings, the time has come for women to move in that sphere which Providence had assigned her…it is the duty of woman…to plead the cause of the oppressed,” (140). Angelina Grimké, one of the most prominent abolition workers, argues that due to their religious beliefs that all people were created equal under the eyes of God, that it was her moral obligation to help those who were not free. This idea was countered by several laws within slave states that stated that slaves could not be freed based on religious beliefs and led to the need for white activists to protest on their behalf. The sphere that Angelina refers to is the public sphere where women had previously been denied entry. Before these movements, women belonged within the home, caring for their own families and abiding by their husbands’ standards. This is a rebuttal, defending the right for women to enter the public sphere in order to provide a maternal and caring service that is associated with

Open Document