President Lincolns Attitude and Position on Slavery and Race - Term Paper Example

? Day Month Year President Lincoln’s Attitude and Position on Slavery and Race Introduction The measure of agreat man is marked by when he wrestles with his conscious, and his conscious wins. President Lincoln can arguably be considered to be such a man. He was a man of passion and love for country. This President was a fighter, having lost countless runs for public office before finally succeeding in his run up to being elected of the President United States. That period of time before becoming President was an era where Lincoln had his own personal convictions, particularly about slavery and race. Upon becoming President, these same convictions had to be balanced against what he felt in his soul was right for the country. It was a difficult time in the country, ending with the Civil War, yet Lincoln showed resolve and determination through it all. The purpose of this essay is to examine the attitudes that President Lincoln had about slavery and race before becoming President, coupled with the gradual shift in those opinions during his Presidency leading up to his eventual assassination. Lincoln’s Personal Convictions Before Becoming President As is the case with many an educated and rational thinking human being, Lincoln’s views toward certain social issues gradually evolved over time. Race and slavery are certainly no exception to his notion, as Lincoln implemented different policies as situations dictated. Interestingly enough, however, his personal views about the subjects did not radically change, but as he saw certain benefits to the country as a whole, he felt obliged to put country first, and his personal moral opinions second. Lincoln never really expressed an inherent desire to abolish slavery before he was president. While he personally did not believe the practice should exist in the United States, he was a strict constitutionalist. This meant that the constitution at the time allowed states to permit slavery should they choose to do so, so he did not believe the federal government had any role in changing that. He did, however, see a difference between blacks and whites. On the issue of race, he did not support the position that blacks were entitled to the same rights and freedoms that whites had (Podgers 38). In a senatorial campaign in 1858, for example, Lincoln clearly stated, “I will say then that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races” (Davis 158). As senator, he openly opposed such issues as blacks being able to vote freely in elections and he did not think that they should be permitted to serve on juries either. Politically, he did not think that blacks should be permitted to hold public office, and he opposed interracial marriage. As a young adult, leading up to his winning public office, Lincoln did support the idea that blacks should be allowed to better themselves and gain opportunities for themselves and their families. If they worked hard, contributed to society, and were moral and upstanding citizens, then they should be able to improve their lot in the life. As we know, however, it was an uphill battle supporting this idea because blacks were denied many of the rights and freedoms that they really needed in order to accomplish the same dreams and ambitions that whites had. As Lincoln gained prominence in the Senate, and began to come to light on the national stage, he often held firm to his convictions and did not waver on issues of race and slavery. As we will discuss in the next section, his early presidency contained many of his earlier policy statements, with a few notable exceptions. Perhaps Lincoln’s personal convictions about these social issues, balanced with his obligations to the people who elected him, can be best seen through a speech he gave in Illinois back in 1854. This was a full six years before being elected President of the United States. In the speech, he reaffirmed his own moral, legal, and economic opposition to slavery. He then continued, however, to make the point that elected officials cannot simply change precedence because they feel like. In the speech, he made clear that he had no idea what exactly could be done about slavery within the current political system (Podgers 39). Ironically, his words ended up being prophetic, as slavery became one of the divisive issues leading up to the Civil War, resulting the rewriting of political history as Lincoln himself helped to change the very legal precedence that he vehemently said nothing could be done about before. A few years later, he argued in the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates that, while slavery should still be permitted in states where the practice was already legal, it should not be expanded into other states or territories. The Beginning of His Presidency: Race and Slavery As mentioned, personally Lincoln appears to have always felt that slavery was morally wrong. As President, however, he felt that he was in no position to alter the law of the land based on his own moral objection. In essence, he took his mandate from the people to mean that he was to enforce the current laws in place, not to create new precedence. Because of this, most scholars would argue that Lincoln was certainly not an abolitionist, particularly in the early years of his presidency. Lincoln addressed the issue of slavery by pointing to various clauses in the Constitution protecting its institution. There was, for example, the clause about fugitive slaves, and the 3/5 clause, giving certain Southern slave-owning states the right to count their slaves as 3/5 person for representation purposes in Congress. From the outset of his administration, Lincoln reiterated his personal opposition to slavery, yet continued his stance that there was little the federal government could do (Davis 160). As for his views on race, he continued with his belief that whites and blacks simply could not coexist freely with one another in an equitable manner. As one way to resolve these differences, Lincoln publicly advocated for the colonization of the African-American population currently living in the United States to another country far from our borders. Lincoln believed that African Americans would have more opportunities for success in life if they were to settle in another country. Somewhere in Central America or West Africa was best (Davis 159). This was a comparable idea to that offered by Henry Clay and Thomas Jefferson, political idols of Lincoln’s, years earlier. While this idea never saw the light of day, it does provide us with a glimpse of Lincoln’s attitude towards race relations during the early part of his tenure as President. It can be concluded, therefore, that Lincoln viewed race as almost a non-issue from the outset of his winning the election. While he firmly believed that blacks could be considered equal to whites in life, this did not equate to them being afforded the same rights and privileges as the common white man. In essence, his policy was to maintain the status quo as was. There were current measures in place that prevented slavery from expanding, and he supported these. He did not, however, initially support extending any other right and freedoms to black, neither free nor slave (Barnett and Block 42). This was simply not a part of his platform, and he did not really focus on any extension of benefits in his early speeches and actions as President. Naturally, much of his early years in office were spent dealing with the secession of the South in the Confederate States of America, however, so it took some time for his views about race and slavery to change. Over the course of a few years, his political ideology would change in numerous ways, particularly in the way he saw the institution of slavery, and towards race relations in general. Changing Attitudes With the Civil Way Looming Many people incorrectly assume that Abraham Lincoln was an abolitionist. This is simply not the case. As mentioned, he did believe that slavery was wrong, yet he was not willing to take any action as President (or as a Senator for that matter) to reverse the institution. Abolitionists firmly believed that slavery should be abolished, and it should be done so immediately. Those freed slaves would then become equal members of society, which we have already determined was not a policy that Lincoln favored. Over time, however, Lincoln supported the view that slavery could be abolished, but it must be done so within the political system itself. This would take some time and, while it annoyed the abolitionists, they had little choice but to work with Lincoln. Ironically, it was the Civil War itself that helped to speed up this process. From the outset of the war, Lincoln firmly believe that the Union Army would quickly defeat the Confederates and that he could begin to govern a unified nation once again (Barnett & Block 42). As months of war lead into years, however, Lincoln shifted his views about slavery. While it is true that the Emancipation Proclamation was issued as an effort to end slavery once and for all, it amounted to a tremendous shift in political ideology on the part of Lincoln himself. His motive, however, was not entirely out of concern for African American slaves. That has already been established. It was, in essence, largely a war times maneuver designed to infuse the Union Army with sorely needed soldiers that would then overrun a tired and outmanned Confederate Army. In so doing, the war would come to an end, slavery would be abolished, and his supporters would be well pleased (Barnett & Block 44). In this manner, President Lincoln altered his original mindset from the time he was a Senator, through the first year of his administration, ending with a reversal of opinion as the Civil War lingered. It now needs to be noted that not all slaves were immediately freed. Lincoln did freed slaves that were in locations not currently under Union control. In areas that were under Union control, he felt slavery needed to remain in order to keep the slave owners in those territories loyal to the North. In this way, the claim can be made that Lincoln had not yet entirely shifted his mindset to the total and unconditional elimination of the institution of slavery. Instead, it was only a partial reversal aimed at accomplishing military victory (Thibodeau 123). During the process of over 200,000 black men fighting for the Union Army, however, and the sentiment of many in his own political party on his side, Lincoln gladly supported that adoption and eventual passage of the 13th, amendment, which did serve to abolish slavery. This appeased Lincoln’s conviction that the Constitution was the law of the land, and served to eliminate slavery at the same time. Conclusion President Lincoln served America during, arguably, the most divided time in the countries young history. While there were other issues to be argued about, slavery and race dominated the political ideology of the time. From the beginning of his political career, through to his eventual assassination, Lincoln ruled with conviction and power. He was a charismatic speaker who tried to gradually shift public opinion over time through his unique and captivating oratorical skills. Until that public opinion shifted, however, he was opposed to any type of unilateral, or dictatorial style, of ruling where his thoughts and ideals became law (Thibodeau 124). Over time, Lincoln developed into a great leader because of his deep conviction and love for the country. As this essay has described, those thoughts shifted over time into a desire to see African Americans freed from the bondage of slavery and to see the country unified in terms of racial relations. While he never lived to see the latter, he was able to accomplish the important task of getting the country to free all slaves and to begin to pick up the shattered pieces that years of Civil War has created. Perhaps we are still picking up those pieces today, but Lincoln can be looked up to as an example of a leader who was not afraid to shift his own policy when he realized it was best for country and for humanity. Works Cited Barnett II, William and Block, Walter. “Abraham Lincoln: Centralizing Class Warrior”. Romanian Economic and Business Review. 5.2 (2010): 39-47. Davis, Lydia. “Meeting Abraham Lincoln”. Harvard Review. 1.31 (2007): 157-161. Podgers, James. “Abraham Lincoln, ESQ”. ABA Journal. 95.2 (2009): 38-40. Thibodeau, Kate. “Kentucky’s Abraham Lincoln”. The Public Historian. 30.4 (2008): 122-124. Read More