Freeing the Slaves: The Unlikely Heros

When people think of President Abraham Lincoln, they often think of the man who freed the slaves. He's the powerful benefactor and without him, the United States wouldn't live up to their saying, that "All men are created equal." While this is true to some extent, Lincoln wasn't the only one who was responsible for the emancipation of the slaves. What people often don't understand is that their freedom didn't only come from above (those higher in society working to free the slaves and simply giving it to them). It also came from below, slaves worked hard to get what they wanted and what they deserved. How did this happen though? How is it possible for the freedom of slaves to come from two different sources?

It all started when plantation owners in the South began to flee their homes as the a Union advanced deeper into their territory. The owners would leave their slaves behind in order to escape faster. All of a sudden, freed, abandoned and escaped slaves started to show up at Union army encampments. The officers didn't know what to do. They were required by law to turn in escaped slaves, but there were so many of them that had no place to go. General Ambrose E. Burnside wrote to the Secretary of War, describing what was happening and saying, "it would be utterly impossible if we were so

disposed to keep them outside of our lines as they find their way to us through woods & swamps from every side— By my next dispatch, I hope to report to you a definite policy in reference to this matter, and in the mean time shall be glad to receive any instructions upon the subject which you may be disposed to give—." He and his troops couldn't keep out any escaped slaves because they're all over the place. They have no idea what to do in regards to the slaves and their actions. Instances such as this show that the slaves are taking initiative in the process of freeing themselves. They are not being freed by anyone; they are seeing opportunities and using them to escape captivity. It is because of this that Lincoln ends up officially emancipating slaves.

Lincoln expresses his motivations for the war in a letter response to Horace Greeley. He says, "What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it helps to save the Union...I intend no modification of my oft-expressed personal wish that all men everywhere could be free." His only motivation for the war is to save the Union and unite it. Despite his personal belief that all men are created equal and deserve to be free, he will only free the slaves if he believes that it will help the Union. While his moral values stood with the slaves, he never stood directly on the slaves' side. However, he does play an important role in freeing the slaves. Without him, they never would've been officially 
emancipated in the eyes of the law.


While Abe Lincoln was important to the process of freeing America's slaves, their freedom truly come from below. It was through their actions and determination that they were able to gain their freedom. 



This is a phot of slaves appearing at a Union encampment after leaving their master's plantation.
http://www.edline.net/files/_yXJhV_/d1a334a11a352b093745a49013852ec4/Docs_XY_Above__Below.pdf