Angelina Grimké's Oppression Of Women

In in the early 1800’s oppression of African American slaves and women were becoming overwhelming to many American habitants. The heavy burden of witnessing the oppression occur was minimal compared to actually living with the invisible bonds of slavery wound around limbs and most importantly, the slave’s mind. The severe cruelty of slavery caused a few brave women and African Americans to speak out against the status quo. The beginning of abolition started with the Liberation theology which Professor Kathleen Kennedy describes as a new way of thinking about the oppressed. Many people began to really think about how God would view the slaves and their owners, the slaves purpose in the world, and was God was associated with the oppressed. As a result of viewing the oppressed slaves in a new way, women like Angelina Grimké started to see a resemblance of oppression towards women in the society which caused her to speak out on co-equality rights for men, women, and African Americans. Women and African American abolitionists were very courageous for the cause of rebutting Antebellum slavery and co-equality rights. All abolitionists and women rights activists were
ridiculed, bullied, and out casted in someway. Throughout their publicized writing and abolitionist conventions, Angelina Grimké and Sojourner Truth were two of the many women who used the language of the bible to make the largest impact on the reform challenge of women’s subordination and Antebellum Slavery. The women were able to use well known verses of the bible to prove that degrading a fellow man into unlawful subordination was the worst sin of them all. Firstly, Angelina Grimké was one of the first famously known abolition and women rights speaker. She spoke at numerous conventions with her sister, Sarah Moore Grimké. Grimké was also a very publicized writer. In her first publication, she expressed themes that would appeal to Christian women and inspire their abolition efforts. In her article, Appeal to the Christian Women of the South, she blatantly uses a Bible analogy with Isiah 58:6: “undo the heavy burdens and let the oppressed go free.” She asks the Christian women of the south if they believe “slavery is sinful.” Grimké suggests to the women, that they set their slaves free but if they wish to stay then pay them wages.
Grimké is very suggestive when interpreting the bible and flat out says that she will purposely break a law set by the government if that meant to withstand the bible. In the same paragraph, she states that no one person along Republicans or Christians should be subject to submission to any human emphasizing the rights that women should also have to stand up to a man. Sojourner Truth was also a women’s rights activist with a different approach than
Grimké. Sojourner Truth was an African American born slave who ran away in 1827, exactly one year before she would have been emancipated as an adult slave in the state of New York. Truth was obviously a strong woman for running away and continuing to raise her two children on her own. She attested that voices spoke to her encouraging her to speak on behalf of the women’s rights activists which she did in 1850 at a women rights convention in Worcester. She argued for the reform by referring to the Exodus verse in the bible when she stated: “Women set the world wrong by eating the forbidden fruit, and now she was going to set it right again.” Truth was an exceptional speaker and influenced the movement greatly when she continued to speak at multiple conventions. Without the courageous individuals who took the risk of speaking out on behalf of slavery and women’s rights, the world would be a different place today. Because Angelina Gimké, Sojourner Truth, and many others, were able to utilize the language of the bible to appeal to their audience and spark a fighting interest in the readers, any race, religion, or party is able to live in equality this is improving every day.