Abraham Lincoln as the Most Influential Perpetrator of Emancipation Proclamation - Essay Example

Abraham Lincoln and Civil Rights Movement for African Americans s Abraham Lincoln &Civil Rights Movement Abraham Lincoln was definitely the emancipator of civil rights movement, as he emerged as quite an influential leader not only for the Negroes of the South but for all of America. Though there is still a second opinion on the thought that Lincoln was an advocate for the complete abolition of slavery or not, yet his legacy as the great emancipator for the African Americans can`t be ignored. It was due to his years of struggle that liberation of over four million slaves took place in the decade when he took over the office of the President. It was President Abraham Lincoln who had initiated the collapse of the institution of slavery via his Emancipation Proclamation, to which even Martin Luther King referred to in his much appreciated speech, which further reiterates that Lincoln was the single most important leader to whom civil rights movement can be attributed. The African Americans Civil Rights movement refers to the struggle and social movement in America with the aim to abolish segregation of African Americans from other White Americans, and also to enforce equal constitutional rights on them as on other Americans (Striner 2012). Also, other factors contributed in the civil rights movements, for instance the Kansan-Nebraska Act of 1854, the role of ex-slave Douglass in inspiring the masses, the Dredd Scott Decision of the Supreme Court, Montgomery bus accident the voting rights act among other factors. The roots for civil rights movement can be found in the 1850`s, with the Kansan-Nebraska act being one of the most important factors. In 1854, a major development took place when the Kansan-Nebraska Act which contributed in the expansion of slavery which replaced the demarcation line of 1820 (Striner 2012). At the same time, Lincoln also joined the Republican party which was yet another factor. Along the lines, at the same time the Republican Party was also founded though Lincoln didn’t join the party right away, since he was supporting the Whigs. However, in 1856 Lincoln also joined the Republican Party though his views on emancipation were vague. He had the idea of abolition of slavery in mind, yet he knew the idea would be farfetched. As a seasoned politician and a wise leader, he knew that at that point advocating for emancipation seemed to be a fair choice and he figured that eventually abolition would also eventually vanish. In other words, the main concern at that point for Lincoln was to contain the expansion of slavery. In his speech on October 1854, an aggressive tone and a moral conviction could also be sensed while advocating for the civil rights of the African Americans. Furthermore, Lincoln`s political aggression in the favor of African Americans grew stronger when the Dred Scott decision of Supreme Court was announced in 1857, and thus the decision also proved to be an important factor in the civil rights movement for the African Americans. The decision clearly and openly stated that the African Americans weren’t citizens of the U.S and therefore, they can`t sue in any Federal Court (Escott 2009). Further extension of the decision implies that the Congress also possesses no authority to contain slavery of any form under the federal territories. Thus, as a reaction, Lincoln now openly declared a “Southern Conspiracy” being planted to expand the institution of slavery. Therefore, the initiation for an open war against the South had emerged. Lincoln wanted to translate his vision for the Civil Rights movement in America into political mandate while he ran for Congressional Senate Elections from his constituency in Illinois held in 1858. The elections in itself doesn’t carry much significance in context to the Civil Rights movement, however, the seven debates help between Lincoln and his opponent Douglas held all over the state created a lot of hype over the issue. There were certain events where up to around 10,000 people were gathered for the debates and Lincoln floated his radical ideas about the rights of the African Americans with conviction and political aggression (Escott 2009). This paved way for a mass movement in America, as the African Americans now saw a leader and the liberal faction, pre-dominantly the Republican Party found a presidential candidate carrying charisma and vigor. In this context, the “House Divided” carry much significance as it contained quite radical ideas stating; “Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it, and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction; or its advocates will push it forward, till it shall become alike lawful in all the States, old as well as new—North as well as South” (Gottheimer 2003) Thus, during the campaign Lincoln aggressively campaigned for racial amalgamation in America. Another important development took place in favor of the Civil Rights Movement by virtue of the congressional campaign. Lincoln took the liberty of using the Declaration of Independence founded by the founding fathers of America to lobby for his cause. He argued that “all men are created equal” is the single most important central statement of the declaration, and racial discrimination clearly refuted it. Though at that point Lincoln was silent on attributing equal treatment to slaves, yet he did argue for the retention on human dignity and basic rights to the African Americans, further stating that Whites had absolutely no right to enslave the Negroes based on their skin color. However, as a wise politician Lincoln chose his words carefully, as he only talked about mere amalgamation of races when he knew his audience would agree on that. Though the Congressional elections were a lost cause for Lincoln, yet the campaign gained immense recognition for him as the contents of his speech were quite convincing in general. Owing to the campaign vigor, Lincoln gained enough support so as to gain nomination for Presidential Election in 1860 (Striner 2012). Furthermore, as soon as Lincoln won the Presidential Election 1860, most of the Southern states opted for secession from the Union as a protest to Lincoln`s anti-slavery stance, which began the period of Civil War. The Civil War officially marks the period after the bombardment of US Army Garrison office in 1860, at the Fort Summer in Charleston Harbor (Neely 1991). The Civil War, thus, was another very significant factor which attributed to the civil rights movement in America. At this point, Lincoln attributed the union of all states as a nation as the war objective, with the added declaration that the issue of slavery must be dealt in such a manner that further expansion must be prevented. However, on one side where he was dealing with the civil war, on the other side, he was in constant pressure to be aggressively vocal against the institution of slavery by the radical faction of his own party. Thus, the emancipation proclamations issued first in 1862 and later in 1863 were war decrees, which carry a huge significance as a way forward for the civil rights movement for the African Americans. The conflict turned into a bloody war with Lincoln attacking the central pillar of the South, i.e. the institution of slavery. Thus, as a result of the war the Emancipation Proclamation was issued which abolished slavery, applicable from January 1863 onwards. The Union army had inducted around 184,000 soldiers with Lincoln being the inspiration which led to the victory of North (Neely 1991). This was also another turning point for Lincoln`s inclination further towards the African Americans as he was quite amazed by their valor and courage. Another important factor in favor of Civil Rights movement came about as a consequence to the decree issued by Confederate Congress in May 1863. It stated that the White officers must be tried in military courts while the former slaves must be tried in state courts. Lincoln was amazed at the decree as this was a huge discriminatory act killing the entire purpose of the emancipation doctrine. Thus, as a result, he issue General Order No. 252 in July 1963 which stated; “It is the duty of every Government to give protection to its citizens, of whatever class, color or condition, and especially to those who are duly organized as soldiers in the public service…. To sell or enslave any captured person on account of his color, and for no offense against the laws of war, is a relapse into barbarism, and a crime against the civilization of the age.” (Gottheimer 2003) Furthermore, Douglas also proved to be a huge factor in bringing about the civil rights movement in America. Abraham Lincoln gave a grand gesture by welcoming an African American delegation at the White House, which reflected the message that America is ready to treat African Americans like one of their own. Douglass met President Lincoln along with his delegation on August 10, 1863, where he applauded the efforts of President Lincoln and attributed him the title of single most important advocate for civil rights movement for the African Americans which proves how the African Americans also had a deep trust of the leadership of President Lincoln (Escott 2009). He also appreciated Lincoln for his sheer impartiality towards color. Also, Lincoln was further motivated when the fact that Douglas wrote words of kindness for him in diary was revealed, as Douglass had written that this was the first time he felt at eye with a white man. However, Lincoln was aware of the fact there was still a long way to go, and so he continued his struggle for the cause. At this point, Lincoln was also deeply concerned on the draft riots in July 1863 at New York where racist mob conflicts were on the rise. Thus, to further strengthen his position on the issue, he wrote a public letter to his political peer from Springlfield, James Cook Conkling (Neely 1991). This letter was a radical attempt to clearly and aggressively state his stance on the abolition of the institution of slavery which he deemed as his ultimate war aim. Conkling also offered Lincoln to give a public speech to the unionist in Springfield, though Lincoln declined the offer and rather signified his stance for emancipation via his public letter. In order to further persuade the public, Lincoln used public letters as an appropriate mean to deliver his message. Via these letters, Lincoln directly addressed those critics who argued against the emancipation doctrine and the incorporation of African Americans into the American troops. However, Lincoln retaliated with the stance that he considered the African American troops as the American patriots just as other white patriots of America. Also, he stressed that the military will only gain strength by virtue of emancipation Proclamation. These statements, public letters and Lincoln`s retaliation were a step forward toward the Thirteenth Amendment which abolishes slavery entirely. Lincoln didn’t only pursued the unification of states in the North and South, rather he was now voicing his intention for liberation around 4 million African Americas by dropping the boundaries of the races. Another great spur arose amongst the masses in America when the New York Times published Lincoln`s letter and stated that the President now seeks loyalty of the entire America and not just his party supporters, and to his surprise the response of the masses was also extra-ordinary. The public wasn’t just positive over the union, rather also seemed persuaded by the doctrine of emancipation. (Neely 1991) Another challenge for Lincoln was the concern over re-election in 1864, while Lincoln was aware of the fact that his chances of redeeming office were quite low. Thus, he was quite concerned over the issue of settling the issue of abolishing slavery in the South before the elections. The opponent from the Democratic Party, George McClellan was a proponent of maintaining peace in America while keeping the institution of slavery in America alive, thus, liberations of the slaves in South was an even more serious concern for Lincoln at that point. Thus, Lincoln had to come up with a new strategy for which he sought assistance from Douglass. With an active alliance with Douglass, a secret community was built in the South to expand the emancipation proclamation amongst slaves and to inspire them to escape and seek protection behind the union (Striner 2012). The organization working in the South proved to be considerably effective; however, Lincoln sought re-election in 1864 after achieving military victory in the South. Also, he then made possible the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment which was ratified by a narrow margin. The ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment was the most significant milestone reached by the effective and strong leadership of Lincoln as if provided the constitutional basis for emancipation. On one hand where Lincoln was facing the issue of reconstruction of the South, on the other hand there was a question mark on the implementation of emancipation. Also, there was now another question on how far the civil rights would be disposed to the African Americans, i.e. whether or not the suffrage would apply on this segment. In his second inaugural address, President Lincoln openly stated the cause of war as slavery. This inaugural address was rather a radical revolution and opened a new chapter for the African Americans as this was first time in the American history when the African Americans marched in the Inaugural Parade held on the Pennsylvania Avenue. Also, by the end of his speech Lincoln gave a biblical touch to the issue of slavery as well. Moreover, Frederick Douglass was also invited at the inaugural ball held in the White House which was a great honor not only for him, but also for the entire African American community dispersed all through the South. Also, Lincoln honored him by warmly welcoming him to the ball in front of all the dignified attendees. Also, Lincoln took him aside to ask about his opinion on the inaugural address and further implied that his opinion was really valuable to Lincoln and there was no one else whom he trusted as much as Douglas. Douglas also responses with kind words, and applauded the attitude and efforts of President Lincoln. Furthermore, the Montgomery Bus Factor also led to the propagation of civil rights to the African Americans. It was in 1950`s that Rosa Park, and activist and also an African American, refused to give up her seat to a white man at a bus in Montgomery which sparked an active protest against racism. At the same time, Martin Luther King also managed to establish the Montgomery Improvement Association owing to which mass boycotts to the system were held, and thus, the courts were pressurized to de-segregate the buses (Young 1996). This was a huge step forward in this context. After many sit-ins, protests and eventual evolution in the legal framework, the Fifteenth and the Sixteenth Amendments were passed. These amendments further ensured the African American`s right to vote and complete liberation of slaves, which was the true path towards the civil rights movement. Throughout the struggle, the Emancipation Proclamation proved to be the building block since slavery would have inhibited the active membership of the African Americans into the American citizenship, owing to which none of the rights would have been acquired by them. Thus, conclusively, Abraham Lincoln was the most influential perpetrator of Emancipation Proclamation which strongly advocated for the civil rights movement for the African Americans. The journey from slavery being a dominant and essential institution in the South to the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment was a slow and gradual one, with deterrence and hindrances scattered all along the way. However, had Lincoln not taken a stance at every step, and taken the issue of race as seriously, the civil rights movement hadn’t even begun, let alone the disposal of civil rights to the African Americans. Yet, other factors also played an important part in shaping the situation as it turned out to be and thus propagating civil rights to the African Americans. Starting from the Nebraska Act which flared up the issue as it drew the demarcation line. Similarly, the Dredd Scott decision was a wakeup call for the African American`s community, which also turned out to be an inspiration for Lincoln to take action. Moreover, as Lincoln managed to persuade the masses, initially during his election campaign for the Senate, he continued to take a stronger position. Also, once he took oath as President and a civil war took place, he managed to develop alliances with people like Douglas to seek advice on the emancipation doctrine. The contribution of Douglass to the entire issue also proved to be a significant factor in giving the African Americans their due rights. Eventually, Lincoln sought public support by persuading them via public letter where he took support from Declaration of Independence and Biblical Annotations to prove the point that African Americans must be a part of the American Troops for military success. Also, he was courageous enough to publically state the fact that slavery was the single most important factor behind the civil war, and he managed not only to acquire military victory but also the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment giving equal rights and rights to citizenship to the African Americans. Though President Lincoln didn’t manage to acquire rights of suffrage to the African Americans, yet his struggle was a big step which led to the initiation of a revolution in America. Furthermore, another great incident that took place during the 1950`s was the Montgomery bus incident, which flared up mass protests and thus the courts gave a decision against the segregation of races in buses. This enhanced the confidence level of the African Americans and thus, after years of struggle the civil rights movement gained momentum and started to bear fruits for the future of the African Americans. References: ESCOTT, P. D. (2009). "What shall we do with the Negro?": Lincoln, white racism, and Civil War America. Charlottesville, University of Virginia Press. GOTTHEIMER, J. (2003). Ripples of hope: great American civil rights speeches. New York, Basic Civitas Books. NEELY, M. E. (1991). The fate of liberty: Abraham Lincoln and civil liberties. New York, Oxford University Press. STRINER, R. (2012). Lincoln and race. Carbondale, Southern Illinois University Press. http://site.ebrary.com/id/10579706. YOUNG, A. (1996). An easy burden: the civil rights movement and the transformation of America. New York, HarperCollins Publishers. Read More