Solomon Northrup Research Paper

The Life of Solomon Northrup Solomon Northrup was born to two free African Americans who had never experienced the life of a slave. In 1841, his life turned upside down when he was kidnapped and sold into slavery in Washington City. Solomon was a fiddle player who went to Washington for a job offer that ended up being just a scam. It seems like he was a trusted and fearless man. For twelve years, he was exposed to the horrors of being treated as a slave. While Solomon Northup experienced life in the north, he became a pawn in the slave trade but was later a key individual in the abolishment of slavery. Life in the north The slave market was run just like it was a car auction where they would sell slaves depending on their skin color, age, sex,

Even though the international slave trade had ended in 1808, the slave market was continuing to grow. The American Yamp book states, “Cotton has become the foundation of the southern economy. As a result, southern planters, politicians, merchants, and trades became more and more dedicated- some would say ‘obsessed’- to the means of its production: slavery” (Locke & Wright, 2019, chapter 11). African Americans like Solomon Northrup, who were living a free life, were being kidnapped and sold in the slave market. Women, children, and men were put to work hours in the fields in horrible conditions. Abolishment of slavery After being beaten, overworked, slashed, and sold multiple times for twelve years, Solomon Northrup was finally rescued and returned home in 1853. The torture, scars, and horrible things he experienced throughout those years drove him to be an advocate for other slaves. Solomon Northrup became a voice for all the slaves that were still in captivity. He became part of the abolishment movement and wrote a book on his life as a slave. The article states, “A celebrity in abolitionist circles, Northrup appeared before New York and New England antislavery audiences as a speaker” (Northrup, n.d.,