The Role Of Abolitionism In The Declaration Of Independence

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." An immense statement inscribed in the Declaration of Independence, granting every (white, land owning) man his freedom. As time goes on and people of the white society begin to take note of the inhumane treatment of African Americans, there is a gradual shift in the political stance on slavery. Abolitionists began pushing to see that the Declaration's words were met. Many white abolitionist fought for African slaves' freedom from a moral standpoint. Angelina Grimke believed slavery was an act against God. In her speech at Pennsylvania Hall, she repeatedly referred to slavery as a sin. "..., I will lift up my voice like a trumpet and show this people their transgression,their sins of omission towards slaves." Some abolitionists believed in the freedom of slaves but not in their equality of rights. Samuel Ward wrote of this in his editorial correspondence mentioning that some only saw Africans as a "half-way set of equals."
In fact, Britain as a country began combating the slave trade as slavery contradicts the values of Britain's emerging industrial economy. Britain organized petition campaigns, signed treaties, and preformed naval actions to prevent further slave trade. After freeing the slaves, the U.S. determined that "separate but equal" was constitutional. As the nation found that separate could not be equal, the civil rights movement began. Martin Luther King, Jr. (among countless others) sought to end this unjust segregation. Martin Luther aroused emotion in U.S. citizens as his means to accomplish this