Existing comment:
The Crisis: Slavery, Violence, The Law
Moral Choices, Political Dilemmas:
John Brown's actions in Kansas and Harpers Ferry raise serious and uncomfortable questions about slavery, violence, and the law. In 1859, nearly 4 million African-Americans legally were enslaved in the United States. While many believed slavery was morally wrong, law and social practices protected the South's "peculiar institution." During the pre-Civil War years, people opposed to slavery weighed the practicality and morality of violence to overthrow the slave system.
Even today, clear and final answers to the issues raised by John Brown's raid are difficult to find, but Harpers Ferry is the appropriate place to ask these troubling questions. |