Force and freedom : black abolitionists and the politics of violence / Kellie Carter Jackson

Author:: Jackson, Kellie Carter
Published:: Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press, [2019]
Copyright Date:: ©2019
Physical Description:: 216 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

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Series:

America in the nineteenth century

Contents:

Introduction : the philosophy of force -- Forcing freedom : the limits of moral suasion -- Fight, flight, and fugitives : the Fugitive Slave Law and violence -- From prayers to pistols : the struggle for progress -- Black leadership : the silenced partners of Harpers Ferry -- A Carbonari wanted : violence, emigration, and the eve of the Civil War.

Summary:

"In Force and Freedom, Kellie Carter Jackson provides the first historical analysis exclusively focused on the tactical use of violence among antebellum black activists. Through rousing public speeches, the bourgeoning black press, and the formation of militia groups, black abolitionist leaders mobilized their communities, compelled national action, and drew international attention. Drawing on the precedent and pathos of the American and Haitian Revolutions, African American abolitionists used violence as a political language and a means of provoking social change. Through tactical violence, argues Carter Jackson, black abolitionist leaders accomplished what white nonviolent abolitionists could not: creating the conditions that necessitated the Civil War. Force and Freedom takes readers beyond the honorable politics of moral suasion and the romanticism of the Underground Railroad and into an exploration of the agonizing decisions, strategies, and actions of the black abolitionists who, though lacking an official political voice, were nevertheless responsible for instigating monumental social and political change."--Publisher's web-site.

Subject(s):

Genre(s):

History

ISBN:

9780812251159 (hardcover)
0812251156

Bibliography Note:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 189-202) and index.

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