Anti-Slavery+in+the+Quad+Cities

Original Author: Nick Reans, ENG 380 Revision Author:
 * Anti-slavery in the Quad Cities**

In 1860 the Quad Cities came to the consensus that slavery was not only wrong but also immoral. Distancing themselves from the beliefs of the South, the QC area did not see how slavery would benefit in the future. Instead they saw it as a disgrace to civilization and to Christianity. Newspapers from around Iowa reflected these views such as the //Register// which warned the South that “even if it secured its independence for a time, its slave system would meet neither sympathy nor encouragement from the civilized world. . . nor be permitted to outrage the moral sense of Christendom” (Wubben 29).

While most people in the North held the opinion that slavery was wrong the South depended on it for their economy. Yet not everyone in the South was in complete agreement that they should have slavery. There were those who suffered in silence, for fear of being heard and the misconception is that it was agreed upon by everyone. The newspapers of the era made it seem this way anyhow. The newspapers in New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago made Southerners look like barbarians, and that they were dismissive of Northern men. These unfair portrayals angered the editor of the Muscatine //Daily Review//, who elaborated at length that:

The great men of the country are greater slaves than the Negroes of the South; they are slaves to every newspaper, telegraph operator or correspondent in the country. If they have a mind of their own, they dare not speak it. The newspaper press rules everything from a quack doctor to the President of the United States. The whole character of American journalism in intrinsically similar—if there is any favorable difference it depends on the local tastes or humors of the vicinity; they are merely political adaptations… (Wubben 22-23).

There was obviously some tension between the news being presented at the time, and the truth that was buried.

**Abolitionists and their achievements** While African Americans had many hurdles to jump, they received help from Quakers, abolitionists, free soilers, and anti-slavery sympathizers. One of the prominent abolitionists of 1857 was Governor James A. Grimes. Grimes was an active abolitionist and supported the revision of the Iowa Constitution of 1846. The Constitution was not supported as it was aimed at including blacks and yet he was successful getting two provisions to pass the legislature “the first was a personal liberty clause of the bill of rights; the second was the legalization of black testimony in court” (Silag 342).

Iowa’s first African American political leader, Alexander Clark Sr. Born in Pennsylvania in 1826 he would later move to Muscatine at the age of 15 after living with his uncle who taught him the barbering trade. Clark worked in several business pursuits and by 1854 found himself established as one of the city’s prosperous entrepreneurs. A Republican who was active in local and state politics, Clark fought for the right to vote, equal educational opportunities, as well as public accommodations. He began his career with the intent to repeal the Iowa Exclusion Act, which prohibited blacks from immigrating to Iowa. The harsh tone of the Act states “the Negro was not welcome, not accepted as an equal, and fiercely resent as a competing laborer” (Langston 341). This attitude did not deter Clark from pursing his goals and was the lead signatory of “free colored persons” on a petition presented by Dr. Reasin Pritchard calling for the repeal of the exclusionary law.

In Iowa in 1868 “the local matter of greatest importance was the question ratification of the Negro suffrage amendment…. The first to be added to the Constitution of 1857, carried by a vote of 105,384 to 81,119, a two-to-one split of the 186,503 votes on the proposition” (Langston 342). At the same time, nationally the federal government was debating on the ratification of the 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which guarantees the right to vote regardless of race. Clark continued to speak on behalf of African Americans and toured throughout Iowa and the South and one historian, Leola Bergmann recalls him being popular as he was referred to as “the colored orator of the West”. Clark would later on become a national delegate, giving him the chance to meet President Grant and Vice President Colfax. The highest honor he received was a presidential appointment to the Republic of Liberia by President Benjamin Harrison. His time was short on the job, as he took his post in November 1890 and died in office in June of 1891.

Despite Republicans remaining in power, the party’s commitment to black rights weakened. North and South states joined forces as it were to undermine Reconstruction. There was state-sanctioned segregation thanks to //Plessy v. Ferguson// which was now constitutional. Thanks to Lincoln’s progress Iowa’s political culture gave way to a sense of fairness and openness to ideals and principles. This would lend future African American leaders to challenge the “separate but equal” attitude which was forming.

In January of 2009 President Barack Obama took office in the White House, making him the first black President the United States has ever had. The only person to ever get as close to the Presidency would be Iowa’s own George E. Taylor. The attached photo shows Taylor as the Standard Bearer of the National Liberty Party for President circa 1904. The notice at the bottom of the photograph says “the only Negro who ever made the race for President”.

Taylor was only three when the Civil War started and eight years old when President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. He believed in abolishing slavery and was politically devoted to Lincoln. He wanted to save the Union, prevent slavery expansion, and end violence against blacks. While he was raised and educated in Wisconsin, he came to Oskaloosa, Iowa in 1891. While in Iowa he published the //Negro Solicitor// and later relocated to Ottumwa where he practiced law. It is recorded that during this period he became involved in the Colored Peoples National Protective Associate and by 1892 was listed as their president. To be clear, “chronologically this places the Colored Peoples National Protective Associate before the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), on February 12, 1909”. (Langston 343)

After understanding the climate of the times, the Quad Cities and surrounding areas were a hotbed of debate when it came to slavery. While those that knew it to be wrong depended on the economic success of the institution, this area make no mistake about it was ready for change. Our nation’s history cannot erase the permanent stain that slavery made, at the very least it is a comfort to know that individuals both white and black devoted their lives to securing a better tomorrow for not only African Americans, but for the American society. With help from abolitionists, Quakers, anti-slavery supporters to freedom fighters like Governor Grimes, Alexander Clark, and George E. Taylor. Thanks to all these figures today’s generation gets to grow up in a time where an African American can become president, where a child of any race has more opportunity to succeed than they ever did before.

Silag, Bill. //Outside In: African-American History in Iowa 1838-2000//. Des Moines, IA: The State Historical Society of Iowa, 2001. 22-29. Print. Wubben, Hubert. //Civil War Iowa and the Copperhead Movement//. Ames, IA: The Iowa State University Press, 1980. 341-343. Print.
 * Works Cited**

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