Nicole’s Reviews > The War Before the War: Fugitive Slaves and the Struggle for America's Soul from the Revolution to the Civil War > Status Update

“Americans, let us remember the dealings of God to other nations, for which national sins have always been followed by national calamities.” The Civil War was a calamity — not only as measured by the scale of suffering it inflicted on black and white alike, but by the freedom it brought was belated, partial and sudden. So sudden that it consigned Black Americans to limbo.

The fugitive slave law was indeed an education. For those who thought slavery was not their problem were forced to think again…the better argument now belonged to those who retorted that so long as slavery exists and the Union continues, we are in fact abettors of that crime.”

“We went to bed one night old fashioned conservative compromised union whigs, and waked up stark mad abolitionists.”

“Impudence unparalleled even in this age of audacity”