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Toward the beginning of the 19th century a significant ...)
Toward the beginning of the 19th century a significant and increasing number of Protestant evangelicals in northern states had determined that slavery was a sin that, as a matter of urgency, must be abolished immediately at all costs. But they faced a powerful obstacle: the very Bible they revere which contains several passages that condone a conditional slave system. Slave owners and their supporters readily pointed to chapters in the Old Testament Book of Leviticus, which outlined the many laws surrounding slavery but did not condemn it. Even the New Testament commanded the slaves to obey their masters and to “regard them worthy of all honor.”
“In her ‘Appeal to the Christian Women of the South,’ Grimkè had suggested that free white southern women oppose slavery by performing a series of unexceptional private acts within the domestic circle – reading, praying, being kind, convincing the males in their families that slavery is wrong, and persuading the slaves to remain submissive. But she also urged these southern women to perform exceptional acts – to break state laws and emancipate their slaves, pay them wages, and teach them to read and write. She had proposed that these women flaunt the statutes forbidding emancipation and literacy in obedience to a Higher Law, and counseled that, if apprehended, they should practice the doctrine of Christian resignation: ‘If a law commands me to sin I will break it; if it calls me to suffer, I will let it take its course unresistingly.’” -Eric J. Sundquist, New Essays on Uncle Tom's Cabin, Cambridge University Press, 1986
The power of these arguments was demonstrated by their effect: copies of this book were burned publicly in South Carolina, and even the Philadelphia Quakers felt that the author had gone too far.
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Today, we colored men and women, everywhere - are up ag...)
Today, we colored men and women, everywhere - are up against it... In the South, they make it as impossible as they can for us to get educated. In the North, they make a pretence of liberality; they give us the ballot and a good education, and then snuff us out. Each year, the problem just to live, gets more difficult to solve.'
The first play by an African American woman ever produced professionally. The European premiere – and the world's first production for nearly 100 years – of Rachel is directed by exciting young director Ola Ince, as part of Black History Month.
Rachel is a young, educated, middle-class woman. But she is born into an African-American family in the early 20th century – a world in which ignorance and violence prevail. While her family and neighbours find different ways to survive, Rachel's dreams of getting married and becoming a mother collide with
the tragic events of her family’s past as she confronts the harsh reality of a racist world.
Written exactly midway between the American Civil War and the end of slavery, and the explosion of Civil Rights in the 1960s, this hauntingly beautiful and profoundly shocking play still asks urgent questions for today.
Letters to Catherine E. Beecher: In Reply to an Essay On Slavery and Abolitionism, Addressed to A. E. Grimké
(This book was originally published prior to 1923, and rep...)
This book was originally published prior to 1923, and represents a reproduction of an important historical work, maintaining the same format as the original work. While some publishers have opted to apply OCR (optical character recognition) technology to the process, we believe this leads to sub-optimal results (frequent typographical errors, strange characters and confusing formatting) and does not adequately preserve the historical character of the original artifact. We believe this work is culturally important in its original archival form. While we strive to adequately clean and digitally enhance the original work, there are occasionally instances where imperfections such as blurred or missing pages, poor pictures or errant marks may have been introduced due to either the quality of the original work or the scanning process itself. Despite these occasional imperfections, we have brought it back into print as part of our ongoing global book preservation commitment, providing customers with access to the best possible historical reprints. We appreciate your understanding of these occasional imperfections, and sincerely hope you enjoy seeing the book in a format as close as possible to that intended by the original publisher.
On Slavery and Abolitionism: Essays and Letters (Penguin Classics)
(A collection of historic writings from the slave-owner-tu...)
A collection of historic writings from the slave-owner-turned-abolitionist sisters portrayed in Sue Monk Kidd’s novel The Invention of Wings
Sarah and Angelina Grimké’s portrayal in Sue Monk Kidd’s latest novel, The Invention of Wings, has brought much-deserved new attention to these inspiring Americans. The first female agents for the American Anti-Slavery Society, the sisters originally rose to prominence after Angelina wrote a rousing letter of support to renowned abolitionist William Garrison in the wake of Philadelphia’s pro-slavery riots in 1935. Born into Southern aristocracy, the Grimkés grew up in a slave-holding family. Hetty, a young house servant, whom Sarah secretly taught to read, deeply influenced Sarah Grimké’s life, sparking her commitment to anti-slavery activism. As adults, the sisters embraced Quakerism and dedicated their lives to the abolitionist and women’s rights movements. Their appeals and epistles were some of the most eloquent and emotional arguments against slavery made by any abolitionists. Their words, greeted with trepidation and threats in their own time, speak to us now as enduring examples of triumph and hope.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Angelina Emily Grimké Weld was an American political activist, women's rights advocate, supporter of the women's suffrage movement, and besides her sister, Sarah Moore Grimké, the only known white Southern woman to be a part of the abolition movement.
Background
Angelina Grimke was born on February 20, 1805 to wealthy parents John Faucheraud Grimké and Mary Smith in Charleston, South Carolina. Angelina’s father was a lawyer, politician, and a judge. He was also a war veteran who served for the nation. Grimke’s mother Mary Smith belonged to an elite family from Charleston.
Angelina was the youngest of the 14 children born to her parents, yet she was far more self-righteous and self-assured compared to the rest of her siblings. Amongst the 13 others, Angelina was particularly close to Sarah Moore.
Career
In 1819, Angelina moved to Philadelphia, along with her sister. She joined the religious group "Society of Friends", in a bid to stand up against slavery and discrimination.
Angelina embraced Presbyterian, a Christian group which was a bit unorthodox in its approach, when she was just 21 years old. Gremke started preaching religious values to the workers at her family home, who were considered slaves. This move made her mother furious initially, but later Angelina’s effort was appreciated.
The Presbyterian faith, also introduced Angelina to William McDowell, who was the pastor of the church she frequently visited. Though both of them were against slavery, McDowell decided to abolish the system through prayers and religious methods, which were unacceptable to Angelina.
Angelina requested all the members of the Presbyterian Church to stop slavery, through a meeting held in 1829. However, the folks didn’t agree with her thought. A disappointed Angelina, later joined the Quaker Community, a small religious group based in her hometown, Charleston.
Angelina was not too pleased with the Quaker community’s approach towards slavery either. She resorted to writing columns of ‘anti-slavery’ content in periodicals such as ‘The Emancipator’ and ‘The Liberator’, in a bid to express her concern about this social issue.
Angelina joined the ‘Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society’ in 1835. She actively participated in dozens of meetings organized by the association, which were held to abolish the social issue.
The ‘American Anti-Slavery Committee’ held a two week conference to emphasize the importance of anti-slavery rights, in 1836. Angelina, and her sister Sarah Moore, attended the event. Soon, the duo was invited to address many gatherings, in a bid to end slavery. Sarah and Angelina also paved way for several anti-slavery groups in the New York region.
In the same year, Angelina happened to read an article written by writer William Lloyd Garrison in the periodical ‘The Liberator’. Impressed by Lloyd’s article, Angelina wrote a letter to the man, praising him for his efforts against slavery. Lloyd returned Angelina’s goodwill gesture by publishing an article about the article in the periodical. This column helped Angelina grab the attention of many like-minded abolitionists.
Angelina passed away On October 26, 1879. She was seventy four years old at the time.
When she was barely thirteen years old, Angelina rebelled out against the traditional beliefs of the Episcopal Church.
Politics
Angelina supported former American president Abraham Lincoln during the Great American Civil War through her words.
Connections
Angelina was in a relationship with a man named Edward Brittle. Though Brittle had never confessed his love for Angelina, his intention to marry her was apparently clear. Unfortunately, Brittle contracted Cholera, and eventually succumbed to the dreaded disease.
Angelina got married to abolitionist Theodore Weld in 1836. The couple first met each other during one of the meetings of the "American Anti-Slavery Committee".