Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom

In United States v. Stanley (1883), the Supreme Court undercuts the constitutional legislation guaranteeing equal treatment for ex-enslaved people. A series of eight cases, collectively known as the Civil Rights Cases, essentially state that the federal government has no authority to intervene in instances of private discrimination. The court defers to states’ rights in the matter. Among other things, this lack of federal oversight means that hotels can ban Black guests, and Railroads are not obliged to seat Black passengers with Whites. In essence, the South is free to practice segregation without fear of federal intervention. 

In 1857, the Supreme Court hears the case of an enslaved person named Dred Scott who travels to a northern state with his master. Scott claims that he is now in free territory and should be regarded as free. The court finds that a slave owner may transport his enslaved people into northern states and still retain ownership of them. This ruling outrages abolitionists who view it as an incursion by the Slave Power of the South into the free states of the North.

On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln signs a document stating that all enslaved people who are the property of rebel owners in Confederate states are now set free. The document is the first step to challenge the Slave Power of the plantation system. Its execution by the president causes great rejoicing in the Black community. 

From the very beginning of the republic, the government enacts various laws regarding the return of runaway slaves. In 1793, the Fugitive Slave Law declares that state governors are responsible for returning fugitives to their rightful owners if those slaves are found within their territories. This law is strengthened in 1850 when the Fugitive Slave Act enlists the aid of the federal government to enforce its mandates. Anyone caught harboring a runaway is subject to prosecution. Abolitionists see the new law as an ominous sign of the growing influence of the Slave Power in national government. 

In 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska Act opens both territories to slavery. This law is enacted in conjunction with the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. The latter prohibited slavery above the 36th parallel of latitude except in Missouri. The repeal and the new law create a major controversy since they potentially allow for the spread of slavery throughout all the western territories. Abolitionists are furious at another encroachment by the Slave Power of the South.

The period directly following the Civil War is known as Reconstruction. It is intended to regulate the behavior of southern states with regard to newly freed enslaved people and guarantee that their rights will be upheld. Lincoln’s assassination greatly curtails the federal government’s involvement in enforcing those rights. President Andrew Johnson’s southern bias blunts many of the policies that would have protected the formerly enslaved. As Reconstruction turns to reconciliation between North and South, the issue of Black civil rights is swept under the rug. 

Many different schemes are proposed for relocating former enslaved people to different parts of the world. Starting in the 1820s, Liberia is an early experiment by the American Colonization Society. The notion never receives widespread support from either Black or White Americans. Lincoln’s abortive attempt to convince Black leaders that their people would be better off elsewhere earns Douglass’s wrath in print. The orator himself briefly toys with the idea of relocating to Santo Domingo, but the political instability of the region doesn’t bode well. Over time, more Black men and women come to identify themselves as Americans and see no reason to leave their native country.

Douglass coins the term “Slave Power” to refer collectively to southern politicians and private interest groups that collude to expand the reach of slavery in America. The Slave Power possesses broad government influence and is instrumental in passing legislation to allow slavery in the western territories and forcing the federal government to intervene in cases of runaway slaves. Northern states see the Slave Power as an encroachment on their sovereign rights. Ultimately, Douglass views the Civil War as a confrontation between constitutional principles of freedom and the Slave Power.