Lincoln and civil rights - Essay Example

Lincoln who essentially came from relatively humble beginnings after being born in a log cabin, married Nancy Hanks in the year 1806. However, when the Lincoln family moved to Indiana, Nancy Hanks Lincoln died of what was by then referred to as “milk sick”2 (McPherson, 2). Lincoln’s Early Interest in the Abolition of Slave Labor The poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” written by Langston Hughes, as he sat by the window looking at a passing train and thinking about the issue of slavery is thought to have primarily been responsible for invoking the common legend that, Abraham Lincoln as a young man actually witnessed a slave auction at the large slave market that was found in New Orleans.

Being sold down the river at the large slave market in New Orleans was considered by many slaves to be one of the worst fates that could possibly befall them. It is thought that after witnessing the slave auction, Lincoln resolved to one day overthrow slavery3 (Leach, 12). The Link Between Slavery and Lincoln’s Childhood and Lifestyle In a similar fashion to the slaves of his time, Lincoln was only able to get a few months of formal schooling. However, due to his relatively insatiable voracity and appetite for learning, Lincoln was virtually able to teach himself whatever he wanted by using books.

Lincoln first ran for the Illinois legislative position in the year 1832 but did manage to clinch the seat however, he successfully managed to be elected to the position for a total of four elections in a row ranging from the year 1834 to the year 1838. It was mainly during this time that Lincoln took to studying law in his own free time and finally managed to become a lawyer at the age of 27. Lincoln was finally able to win a seat in the country’s house of representatives in the year 1846, after he had successfully managed to serve his tenure, Lincoln got offered the chance to be governor in Oregon which was basically a newly formed state, he however declined the post and opted to return to Illinois and devote himself to his law practice after what he considered to be his retirement from politics.

The Missouri Compromise, its Effect on Slavery and Its Prompting of Lincoln to Return to Politics The Missouri compromise was essentially passed back in the year 1820 in the United States Congress. The compromise was reached between the anti-slavery factions and the pro-slavery factions in the government. The compromise sought to reach an agreement as pertaining to the regulation of slavery mainly in the western territories of the country. In the agreement, all forms of slavery were essentially prohibited in the state of Louisiana with the exception of the regions within the boundaries of the newly proposed state of Missouri.

The compromise proposed by this law was seen to considerably incense Lincoln who had been brought up by parents that belonged to a church that openly opposed the idea of slavery. Lincoln was personally seen to have relatively strong opinions in regards to the subject. In this regard, Lincoln was once quoted as claiming that every time he happened to hear someone openly arguing for the promotion of slavery in the country, he almost always felt an urge to have slavery tried on the individual in question personally4 (Guelzo, 182).

During the next presidential elections, Lincoln joined the Republican party and travelled to the city of New York where he gave a speech that has come to be referred to as the “