Slavery is the Elephant in the Room

 

Slavery is the Elephant in the Room!

      The essential question: How do we know the debate over slavery was the "elephant in the room" for American politics in the early 19th century?  The phrase "elephant in the room" means that an obvious truth is either not being addressed or is being ignored.  The obvious truth is that slavery is wrong in every way possible.  The politics and many others refused to accept this and instead were debating over which states would be free states and which states would be slave states.  They didn't spend any time trying to end slavery which is what clearly should have happened because they were so absorbed in the naming of states.  In class, to better our understanding of the matter, we looked at evidence for different events that had occurred during the 19th century involving slavery.  We then created a timeline to complete the activity which made all of the events easier to look at since they were all laid out together in order of occurrence.     

These are the timelines I created!

One of the first instances during the 19th century where slavery was the "elephant in the room" was in the Compromise of 1850.  The Compromise was created due to several points that were at issue.  A quote, "The United States had recently acquired a vast territory -- the result of its war with Mexico. Should the territory allow slavery, or should it be declared free? Or maybe the inhabitants should be allowed to choose for themselves? ".  This is just one of the points that shows how utterly inhumane the people were because all they cared about was whether the states were "free" or "slave-states".  None of these points had anything to do with slavery being wrong or the fact that it should be abolished.

  Next, in the crime against Kansas speech, Sumner stated strongly what his beliefs were on slavery.  He stated, "It is the rape of a virgin Territory, compelling it to the hateful embrace of Slavery; and it may be clearly traced to a depraved desire for a new Slave State, hideous offspring of such a crime, in the hope of adding to the power of Slavery in the National Government."  Although Sumner clearly showed in this excerpt and throughout the whole speech that slavery was wrong, not everyone listened.  The government still only cared about naming the states as either free states or slave states.  This shows how slavery was the "elephant in the room" because Sumner had the audacity to say it in front of so many people at his speech but the government still didn't care change its current ways.  

Another instance where slavery is the "elephant in the room" is the Dred Scott decision.  Dred Scott was a Missouri slave who traveled in the north with his slave owner who was elderly and sick.  When Scott's slave owner died, he argued that he and his wife Harriet were now free because they were in the north free states.  This case got so big that it was brought to trial.  In the end, SCOTUS ruled 7-2 against the Scott's.  There were then three effects of the Dred Scott decision on the slavery debate.  First, slaves were unable to sue in court since they technically were not citizens.  Next, enslaved people could not win freedom simply by living in a free state or territory.  Lastly, the Missouri Compromise was ruled unconstitutional and all territories were opened to slavery. The Dred Scott decision clearly ignores the fact or realizing that slavery in itself was completely wrong and instead SCOTUS focused on how "wrong" it was that an enslaved man and woman wanted freedom since they were in the free states.  

Newspaper article focusing on the Dred Scott decision.

Lastly,  John Brown's raid depicts an event that was planned in the hopes of ending slavery but was instead put to an end by the U.S. troops.  On October 16, 1859, Brown and 21 men including 5 African Americans attacked the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia.  They hoped to seize weapons from the arsenal so they could supply the slaves for the rebellion.  Brown claimed he had a dream of an uprising of enslaved Americans that would end slaver, punish slave holders, an lead the United States to moral renewal.  The U.S. troops put an end to it violently and Brown was sentenced to being hanged.  This is an example of someone standing up for what they believed was wrong and being hanged for it.  Brown knew slavery was wrong but no one else was willing to accept it or doing something like he did.

            John Brown 

   In conclusion, slavery was the "elephant in the room" for American politics in the early 19th century.  Based on all of the evidence that was analyzed, slavery clearly was being ignored in all of the issues.  The main focus seemed to be whether the states were declared "free" or "slave states."  Even when John Brown acted out in hopes to ending slavery, the U.S. troops immediately put an end to it and he was hanged!  Politics really ignored the fact that slavery was wrong and needed to be abolished which is why slavery was definitely the "elephant in the room" during the 19th century.  

Citations: 

Dred Scott, image, class notes, edline.net   http://www.edline.net/files/_BYIYQ_/a95c65dcd7b8c02c3745a49013852ec4/Elephant_in_the_Room_Lesson.pdf

John Brown, image, class notes, edline.net   http://www.edline.net/files/_BYIYQ_/a95c65dcd7b8c02c3745a49013852ec4/Elephant_in_the_Room_Lesson.pdf

SOURCE: The Works of Charles Sumner, vol. IV (Boston: Lee and Shepard, 1870- 1873), pages 125-249.

The Compromise of 1850 and the Fugitive Slave Act, website article, www.pbs.org  http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2951.html