The Gist of Freedom Welcomes Stephanie Gilbert to the reading and book discussion, Black Abolitionists by Benjamin Quarles with hosts, Preston Washington and Ty Gray-EL.One of The First, Interracial Riots, Blacks and Whites, Anti-Slavery Supporters Rioted together, in defense of Anthony Burns, a Self-Emancipated "Fugitive Slave"! In 1854, Anthony Burns, a self emancipated former enslaved black man, from Virginia, was arrested in Boston. His capture enraged black and white abolitionists. Two days after the arrest, a number of them attacked the federal courthouse with a battering ram, hoping to free Burns. Their attempt failed. Burnss defense lawyer, a black attorney Robert Morris was not successful. After a brief trial, he was ordered returned to slavery. On June 2nd, thousands of people lined the streets of Boston. They hissed and shouted, "Shame! Shame!" as federal authorities escorted Anthony Burns to a ship waiting in the harbor. It took approximately 2,000 troops and cost $40,000 to maintain order and return the black man to bondage. No fugitive slave was ever captured in Massachusetts again.Consequently, one deputy was shot dead, several men wounded, and 13 arrested. Burns remained in custody. In an attempt to find a compromise an appeasement to the slavers in their quest to rid the country of free blacks and members of the black Anti-Slave Movement led by hundreds of activists such as Frederick Douglass, Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850. The new law targeted these groups, their self help organizations and institutions, the law encouraged and deputized anyone who sought to arrest a suspected "Fugitive".. The law significantly increased anti-slavery sentiment among Northerners. Vigilance Committees were formed to aid fugitive slaves, and some of the more militant abolitionists turned to civil disobedience.
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