Lincoln's not so well known racist verbage, other info on Slavery and Northern Racist laws

Lincoln & the Northern state government's views on Race

 For one to fully understand the Causes of the War, one must look at it as a mid 19th century American would look at it, not how a 21st century american would look at it

The Lincoln quotes on white superiority are well known by both sides of the great debate.  The most famous of these quotes was spoken by ABE in the Lincoln-Douglas debates while debating in Ottowa, Illinois on August 21st 1858, Mr. Lincoln stated, quite plainly, that:

"I have no disposition to introduce political and social equality between the white and black races. There is a physical difference between the two, which in my judgment will probably forever forbid their living together on terms of respect, social and political equality, and inasmuch as it becomes a necessity that there should be a superiority somewhere, I, as well as Judge Douglas, am in favor of the race to which I belong having the superior position;". -Abraham Lincoln

Most Lincoln supporters say he was being a masterful politician and garnering votes and that he personally did not believe that. (which then destroys the HONEST ABE argument that I was told in elementary school, that Lincoln never told a lie) Nonetheless, a less talked about aspect of Lincoln's indifference to the black race was his obsession with colonization.  The issue in the 1850s and 60s even in the south was not the morality of slavery, rather what to do with 3 million freed African-Americans (some only one generation removed from tribal Africa). No other nation on earth had the problem, so the United States had no "playbook" to follow.  Lincoln believed in deporting all people of color off the continent because he believed the mere existence of blacks caused white suffering/misfortune.. pretty strong stuff from the "great emancipator". the sentence from the speech is :

"You and we are different races. We have between us a broader difference than exists between almost any other two races. Whether it is right or wrong I need not discuss, but this physical difference is a great disadvantage to us both, as I think your race suffer very greatly, many of them by living among us, while ours suffer from your presence. In a word we suffer on each side. If this is admitted, it affords a reason at least why we should be separated." - Abraham Lincoln

(full speech is at the end of the post)

Lincoln believed that race was a giant barrier that would forever prohibit whites and blacks to coexist. More importantly, the reason he believed that goes back to the first quote of this post: he believed whites to be superior and simply thought everything would be better if blacks (free or slave) were 100% eradicated from the United States. As shown in the full speech at the end of the article, Lincoln does not consider any people of color to be truly AMERICAN he considers them ALIEN, (not native) Lincoln says the people of color should all return to their native soil. By using those words he is showing his belief that people of color simply DO NOT BELONG in the United States. This is why Lincoln had such strong beliefs in Colonization of all colored people.

Times were different back then, due to the institution of slavery back to before Christ.  Most men in the western world believed there was a real difference between the races, Lincoln included.  My argument is that people who claim "Lincoln & the Federal government fought to free slaves and the south simply fought to keep slaves" fail to put into context the beliefs, issues, and how most people (north&south) thought back then. It becomes clear how and why detractors, critics, and intellectual dishonest historians call all southerners racist and claim the war was simply about the right to keep slaves when one understands that they look at the war & the Confederacy through the context of present day, not of 1861.

  

A good argument to those that believe the entire war was fought over the right to keep slaves or not has to deal with the CORWIN AMMENDMENT. The corwin amendment would have kept slavery legal in the states it was already legal FOREVER under FEDERAL LAW. Ironically, it would have become the 13th amendment had it been ratified. Weeks before the outbreak of war, Lincoln penned a letter to governors of each seceded state guaranteeing the CORWIN AMENDMENT to pass if the states would not leave the union. The governors/states declined the offer.

Simply put: Lincoln guaranteed the southern states that slavery would be legal forever under the constitution in all states where it was already legal if the states decided to stay in the union. If as all southern detractors say: "the south ONLY seceded for the right to keep/own slaves", then the south would have achieved victory & got its wish without ever having gone to war. But as we all know, they declined the offer.. which means there were OTHER ISSUES. This is simple logic, if all the seceding state's wanted was the right to keep slaves and know that it would not be outlawed, they would have got their wish in 1861 and the Union would have been re-assembled and slavery would have been legal in the cotton states.

In his inaugural address, Lincoln noted Congressional approval of the Corwin amendment and stated that he "had no objection to its being made express and irrevocable." As shown in this piece Lincoln was certainly not overly concerned with the "plight of the slaves" and he certainly wasn't interested in equality or social justice. As shown below, Northern state laws showed Northerners did not want a single person of color (free or slave) to enter their state.

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 Further looking at the issue as a 1850/60 American viewed it

As stated above and believed by all sane rational men in the 21st century, Slavery's morality was rarely questioned even in those times.  However, the biggest problem facing 19th century America was : what to do about it? Simply freeing the slaves was not the issue, the issue was what to do with 3 million people that had no property, wealth, education of their own ONCE they were free.  Lincoln believed deportation was the only rational way, and to be fair he was not alone.  Many other early American Political leaders (such as Andrew Jackson) believed that once slavery was abolished colonization was the only way to logistically accomplish that.  

Another way to further examine the complexity of the issue was to look at recent state laws of the time created by northern states dealing with blacks. 

OREGON CONSTITUTION: No free negro, or mulatto, not residing in this State at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall come, reside, or be within this State, or hold any real estate, or make any contracts, or maintain any suit therein; and the Legislative Assembly shall provide by penal laws, for the removal, by public officers, of all such negroes, and mulattoes, and for their effectual exclusion from the State, and for the punishment of persons who shall bring them into the state, or employ, or harbor them.

INDIANA had the exact same law

ILLINOIS: PROHIBITS ALL FREE BLACKS UNLESS THEY PAID 1,000 USD (alot of cash in mid 19th century USA!)

ILLINOIS STATUTES: #12 If any person or persons shall permit or suffer any slave or slaves, servant or servants of color, to the number of three or more, to assemble in his, her or their outhouse, yard or shed, for the purpose of dancing or revelling, either by night or by day, the person or persons so offending shall forfeit and pay the sum of twenty dollars with cost to any person or persons who will sue for and recover the same by action of debt or indictment, in any court of record proper to try the same.
     Section 13. It shall be the duty of all coroners, sheriffs, judges and justices of the peace, who shall see or know of, or be informed of any such assemblage of slaves or servants, immediately to commit such slaves or servants to the jail of the county, and on view or proof thereof to order each-and every such slave or servant to be whipped not exceeding thirty-nine stripes on his or her bare back.

These are several (of many) examples of how in northern states the idea to solve the problem was to simply not allow ANY people of color (free or slave) into their state.  The truth is the first segregation in this nation was in the north, not the south. Simply put the northern manumission laws goal was to rid the entire north of the African population (and they were very successful).

In conclusion, people arguing the south only fought for the right to keep slaves don't put themselves in the shoes of American politicians (north and south) of the mid 19th century. One cannot study politics, psychology, or any like minded subject in history if they do not first understand how and why people thought the way they did at the time being studied. The issue of slavery by the 1860s was not the morality of its practice, but the logistics and practicality of what to do ONCE the SLAVES were freed. History shows us free blacks prior, during and after the war in the north struggled mightily to exist. Northern AND southern politicians of the mid 19th century knew the complexity and problems that would arise when all 3 million slaves were to be freed. Even in 1861, the majority of politicians (through the Corwin Amendment) were willing to keep slavery legal in the cotton states, outlaw it everywhere else and deal with the problem that way. The Corwin amendment being guaranteed to be ratified as the 13th amendment to the seceding states and the states refusal shows the southern states were fighting for alot more than the right to keep and own slaves because that right was guaranteed to them forever by Abraham Lincoln himself in 1861.  

-Matt Bowden-

Lewisville TEXAS

Video of the day:

Thomas DiLorenzo 1 hour interview on CSPAN

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Lincoln's full speech to the committee of colored men:

This afternoon the President of the United States gave audience to a Committee of colored men at the White House. They were introduced by the Rev. J. Mitchell, Commissioner of Emigration. E. M. Thomas, the Chairman, remarked that they were there by invitation to hear what the Executive had to say to them. Having all been seated, the President, after a few preliminary observations, informed them that a sum of money had been appropriated by Congress, and placed at his disposition for the purpose of aiding the colonization in some country of the people, or a portion of them, of African descent, thereby making it his duty, as it had for a long time been his inclination, to favor that cause; and why, he asked, should the people of your race be colonized, and where? Why should they leave this country? This is, perhaps, the first question for proper consideration. You and we are different races. We have between us a broader difference than exists between almost any other two races. Whether it is right or wrong I need not discuss, but this physical difference is a great disadvantage to us both, as I think your race suffer very greatly, many of them by living among us, while ours suffer from your presence. In a word we suffer on each side. If this is admitted, it affords a reason at least why we should be separated. You here are freemen I suppose.

A Voice: Yes, sir.

The President---Perhaps you have long been free, or all your lives. Your race are suffering, in my judgment, the greatest wrong inflicted on any people. But even when you cease to be slaves, you are yet far removed from being placed on an equality with the white race. You are cut off from many of the advantages which the other race enjoy. The aspiration of men is to enjoy equality with the best when free, but on this broad continent, not a single man of your race is made the equal of a single man of ours. Go where you are treated the best, and the ban is still upon you.

I do not propose to discuss this, but to present it as a fact with which we have to deal. I cannot alter it if I would. It is a fact, about which we all think and feel alike, I and you. We look to our condition, owing to the existence of the two races on this continent. I need not recount to you the effects upon white men, growing out of the institution of Slavery. I believe in its general evil effects on the white race. See our present condition---the country engaged in war!---our white men cutting one another's throats, none knowing how far it will extend; and then consider what we know to be the truth. But for your race among us there could not be war, although many men engaged on either side do not care for you one way or the other. Nevertheless, I repeat, without the institution of Slavery and the colored race as a basis, the war could not have an existence.

It is better for us both, therefore, to be separated. I know that there are free men among you, who even if they could better their condition are not as much inclined to go out of the country as those, who being slaves could obtain their freedom on this condition. I suppose one of the principal difficulties in the way of colonization is that the free colored man cannot see that his comfort would be advanced by it. You may believe you can live in Washington or elsewhere in the United States the remainder of your life, perhaps more so than you can in any foreign country, and hence you may come to the conclusion that you have nothing to do with the idea of going to a foreign country. This is (I speak in no unkind sense) an extremely selfish view of the case.

But you ought to do something to help those who are not so fortunate as yourselves. There is an unwillingness on the part of our people, harsh as it may be, for you free colored people to remain with us. Now, if you could give a start to white people, you would open a wide door for many to be made free. If we deal with those who are not free at the beginning, and whose intellects are clouded by Slavery, we have very poor materials to start with. If intelligent colored men, such as are before me, would move in this matter, much might be accomplished. It is exceedingly important that we have men at the beginning capable of thinking as white men, and not those who have been systematically oppressed.

There is much to encourage you. For the sake of your race you should sacrifice something of your present comfort for the purpose of being as grand in that respect as the white people. It is a cheering thought throughout life that something can be done to ameliorate the condition of those who have been subject to the hard usage of the world. It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels he is worthy of himself, and claims kindred to the great God who made him. In the American Revolutionary war sacrifices were made by men engaged in it; but they were cheered by the future. Gen. Washington himself endured greater physical hardships than if he had remained a British subject. Yet he was a happy man, because he was engaged in benefiting his race---something for the children of his neighbors, having none of his own.

The colony of Liberia has been in existence a long time. In a certain sense it is a success. The old President of Liberia, Roberts, has just been with me---the first time I ever saw him. He says they have within the bounds of that colony between 300,000 and 400,000 people, or more than in some of our old States, such as Rhode Island or Delaware, or in some of our newer States, and less than in some of our larger ones. They are not all American colonists, or their descendants. Something less than 12,000 have been sent thither from this country. Many of the original settlers have died, yet, like people elsewhere, their offspring outnumber those deceased.