When reading Chapter 12 of the textbook, I stumbled upon a section about a free black abolitionist man named David Walker. After doing further research, I found his life and his efforts in the abolitionist movement quite moving.
Born in North Carolina, David Walker grew up as a free black. His father was a slave but because his mother was free, under the American law of partus sequitur ventrem, he inherited his mother’s status and was able to obtain an education. Even though he himself was a free black, he was horrified by the oppression of fellow black people who were slaves. After settling in Boston as an adult, he soon became a successful owner of a secondhand clothing shop. More importantly, this was the place Walker became involved in the abolitionist movement. His first involvement was serving as a subscription sales agent for New York City’s first newspaper operated and owned by African Americans, Freedom’s Journal. By the end of 1928, he had become one of the most prominent abolitionist advocates of his time. By 1929, he had written a passionate pamphlet against slavery called Walker's Appeal, in Four Articles; Together with a Preamble, to the Coloured Citizens of the World, but in Particular, and Very Expressly, to Those of the United States of America.
In this pamphlet, Walker urged slaves to fight for their freedom, even if force was necessary. Using many references like the Declaration of Independence and the Bible, he tackled issues like racial prejudice, education, and religion for colored people. The overall purpose of The Appeal was to push black Americans to mobilize for abolition, as well as urge white Americans to realize the immorality of slavery. But, what I found most interesting about this story was how he distributed these pamphlets to spread his beliefs. As I mentioned, he owned a secondhand clothing shop in Boston. Through this business, he sewed copies of The Appeal into the pockets of coats, which would eventually reach ports in the South and other used-clothes salesmen would help spread them. He also used black seamen who were sympathetic to his cause to help their distribution. Walker’s language alarmed many Southern slaveholders which led to legislation outlawing antislavery materials and education for black people.
Unfortunately, David Walker’s story did not end well. As controversy grew over his pamphlet, many of his friends urged him to move to Canada, but Walker ended up refusing. So, when he was found dead in Boston under mysterious circumstances, many believed he had been poisoned. Even though his contribution to the abolitionist movement was short-lived (he died at age 33), his words and beliefs would inspire others in years to come.
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I found reading this post very interesting, especially because I think it is important to know influential figures in political movements. I agree that David Walker had an important impact on the abolitionist movement because his works influenced others such as William Lloyd Garrison, who published The Liberator. The Liberator was an anti-slavery newspaper that increased white American’s support of abolition. That said, his effects were not immediate. The Compromise of 1850, for example, limited the rights of black Americans by enforcing a stricter fugitive slave law. Although Walker had an undeniable impact regarding the permanent emancipation of slaves, in many ways, the rights of black Americans decreased with the increase in sectionalism. Still, The Appeal was one of the many abolitionist works that led to the emancipation of slaves and the increased rights for black Americans.
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