Eleanor Finch
William Lloyd Garrison was an American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator, which he founded in 1831 and published in Boston until slavery in the United States was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865. He believed that the US Constitution was a pact with the devil that ought to be immediately discarded for its unjust and unnecessary compromises with slavery. He referred to the Constitution as a covenant with death and an agreement with Hell, and refused to participate in American electoral politics because doing so would mean supporting the pro-slavery, war-sanctioning Constitution of the United States. Instead, he and his followers, the Garrisonians, repeatedly called for a dissolution of the Union under the slogan No Union with Slaveholders.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| View of the Constitution | A "covenant with death" and "an agreement with Hell" |
| A pact with the devil | |
| An "infamous bargain" and an "unholy alliance" | |
| A "heaven-daring, unholy alliance" | |
| View of the Union | Not worth saving, so long as slavery continued to exist |
| "No Union with Slaveholders" | |
| The Union was tainted by the presence of slavery in the South | |
| View of the Founding Fathers | They traded union and white liberty for black slavery |
| View of the Compromise | Unjust and unnecessary |
| View of the Abolitionists | They believed the Founding Fathers intended to put slavery on the road to extinction |
| View of the Political System | Working within it was pointless, as the national government was controlled by slaveowners |
| View of the Presidency | From 1788 until 1860, only two opponents of slavery held office, while slaveowners held office for 50 of these 72 years |
| View of the Constitution's Language | The word "slavery" appears only in the 13th Amendment, where the institution is abolished |
| View of the Abolitionists' Role | They should not participate in politics and government |
| View of Emancipation | He stressed "moral suasion", non-violence, and passive resistance |
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What You'll Learn
William Lloyd Garrison's view of the Constitution as a covenant with death
William Lloyd Garrison was an American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator, which he founded in 1831 and published in Boston until slavery in the United States was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865.
Garrison viewed the US Constitution as a "covenant with death" and "an agreement with Hell", refusing to participate in American electoral politics because doing so meant supporting "the pro-slavery, war-sanctioning Constitution of the United States". He believed that the Constitution was the result of a terrible bargain between freedom and slavery and that it was heavily influenced by slave owners.
Garrison's opposition to the Union stemmed from a desire to avoid the corruption that came from participating in a government created by the pro-slavery Constitution. He stressed "moral suasion", non-violence, and passive resistance in his approach to emancipation, arguing for the "immediate and complete emancipation of all slaves".
In 1854, Garrison publicly burned a copy of the Constitution, condemning it as "a Covenant with Death, an Agreement with Hell", referring to the three-fifths compromise that had written slavery into the document. He believed that the Union was tainted by the presence of slavery in the South and was not worth saving as long as slavery continued to exist.
Garrison's views on the Constitution as a "covenant with death" were shared by other abolitionists, who saw it as a pro-slavery document that compromised moral values and legal justice. They understood the Constitution to be a consequence of political compromise rather than a deliberate conspiracy of evil men.
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His belief that the Constitution was pro-slavery
William Lloyd Garrison, an abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer, believed that the US Constitution was pro-slavery. He founded and published an anti-slavery newspaper called "The Liberator", where he advocated for the immediate and complete emancipation of all slaves.
Garrison saw the Constitution as a pact with the devil, an infamous bargain and an unholy alliance. He believed that it was a compromise between freedom and slavery, referring to it as "a covenant with death and an agreement with hell". He refused to participate in American electoral politics because doing so would mean supporting the "pro-slavery, war-sanctioning Constitution of the United States". Instead, he and his followers, the Garrisonians, argued for a dissolution of the Union under the slogan "No Union with Slaveholders".
Garrison's opposition to the Union stemmed from his desire to avoid the corruption that came from participating in a government created by the pro-slavery Constitution. He understood that the Constitution was heavily influenced by slave owners and that slave owners had held the office of the presidency for the majority of years since 1788.
Garrison's views on the Constitution were so strong that in 1854, he publicly burned a copy of it, along with copies of the Fugitive Slave Law and other documents related to slavery. He believed that the Constitution was a flawed compromise that could not serve as a basis for uncompromising legal justice and that a new Constitution, one that was anti-slavery, would be needed to truly abolish slavery.
Garrison's radical views on the Constitution and his call for disunion were not without controversy, and they led to a falling-out with Frederick Douglass and most major politicians. Despite this, Garrison remained a prominent figure in the anti-slavery movement until slavery was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865.
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His refusal to participate in American electoral politics
William Lloyd Garrison was an abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely-read anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator, which he founded in 1831 and published in Boston until slavery in the United States was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865.
Garrison's views on the Constitution were informed by his belief that it was a pro-slavery document. He refused to participate in American electoral politics because he saw doing so as supporting "the pro-slavery, war-sanctioning Constitution of the United States". He believed that the Constitution was a pact with the devil that ought to be immediately discarded for its unjust and unnecessary compromises with slavery. He promoted "no-governmentism", also known as "anarchism", and rejected the inherent validity of the American government on the basis that its engagement in war, imperialism, and slavery made it corrupt and tyrannical.
Garrison's refusal to participate in American electoral politics was also influenced by his belief in individual sovereignty and his critique of coercive authority. He argued that the Union of free states and slave states entwined the cultures, economics, and legal structures of both. He stressed "moral suasion", non-violence, and passive resistance in his approach to emancipation. He advocated for the immediate and complete emancipation of all slaves, rather than the gradual emancipation favoured by some other abolitionists.
Garrison's views on the Constitution and his refusal to participate in American electoral politics led to a falling-out with Frederick Douglass and most major politicians. Douglass and other political abolitionists believed that the Constitution could be interpreted as being anti-slavery. Garrison's refusal to participate in politics and government also influenced the women's rights leader Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who attended the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London in 1840 as a spectator. When the convention refused to seat America's women delegates, Garrison joined them in the spectators' gallery, refusing to take his seat as a delegate.
Garrison's refusal to participate in American electoral politics was based on his belief that the Constitution was irredeemably pro-slavery and that the only way to achieve abolition was to dissolve the Union and create a new Constitution. He saw the Union as tainted by the presence of slavery in the South and believed that it was not worth saving as long as slavery continued to exist. He argued that the North must terminate the Union and seek a higher moral law, which radical abolition called for.
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His call for the dissolution of the Union
William Lloyd Garrison was an American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator, which he founded in 1831 and published in Boston until slavery in the United States was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865. He also supported the rights of women and became a prominent voice for the women's suffrage movement in the 1870s.
Garrison's view of the Constitution was that it was a pact with the devil—a covenant with death and "an agreement with Hell". He refused to participate in American electoral politics because doing so meant supporting the pro-slavery Constitution. Instead, under the slogan "No Union with Slaveholders", Garrisonians repeatedly argued for a dissolution of the Union.
Garrison's call for the dissolution of the Union was based on moral conscience. He believed that any union with slaveholders would be a heaven-daring, unholy alliance. Garrison argued that the North must terminate the Union and seek the higher moral law that radical abolition called for. He urged that any compact based on such a moral evil could not and should not last.
Garrison's beliefs were not without controversy. They led to a falling-out with Frederick Douglass, most major politicians, and another group of abolitionists who disagreed with his insistence that the U.S. Constitution was a pro-slavery document.
In an 1855 speech, Garrison addressed the question of how the dissolution of the Union could be effected. He argued that whenever the people are ready for disunion, they will easily find a way to effect it. He believed that the people would come together in their primary assemblies and elect representatives to devise ways to separate and frame a new government, free from the spirit of bondage.
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His support for no-governmentism or anarchism
William Lloyd Garrison was an American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known for his widely read anti-slavery newspaper, The Liberator, which he founded in 1831 and published in Boston until slavery in the United States was abolished by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865.
Garrison promoted "no-governmentism", also known as "anarchism", and rejected the inherent validity of the American government. He believed that the government's engagement in war, imperialism, and slavery made it corrupt and tyrannical. His belief in individual sovereignty and critique of coercive authority have been recognized as a precursor to certain strands of modern libertarian thought.
Garrison's anarchism was closely tied to his abolitionist beliefs. He saw the United States Constitution as a pro-slavery document and argued that abolitionists should not participate in politics and government. He refused to participate in American electoral politics, stating that to do so would mean supporting "the pro-slavery, war-sanctioning Constitution of the United States." Instead, he and his followers argued for a dissolution of the Union under the slogan "No Union with Slaveholders."
Garrison's opposition to the Union stemmed from a desire to avoid the corruption that came from participating in a government created by the pro-slavery Constitution. He understood that the Constitution was heavily influenced by slaveowners and saw it as a compromise between freedom and slavery. He famously referred to the Constitution as "a covenant with death" and "an agreement with Hell," reflecting his view that it was a pact with the devil that unjustly and unnecessarily compromised with slavery.
Garrison's belief in anarchism and his rejection of the American government led him to advocate for the immediate and complete emancipation of all slaves. He stressed "moral suasion", non-violence, and passive resistance in his approach to emancipation. However, his extreme views and actions, such as publicly burning a copy of the Constitution, also caused controversy and led to disagreements with other abolitionists, including Frederick Douglass.
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Frequently asked questions
William Lloyd Garrison believed the US Constitution was a pact with the devil and an "unholy alliance" that ought to be immediately discarded for its unjust and unnecessary compromises with slavery.
On July 4, 1854, Garrison publicly burned a copy of the US Constitution, condemning it as "a Covenant with Death, an Agreement with Hell". He also refused to participate in American electoral politics because doing so meant supporting "the pro-slavery, war-sanctioning Constitution of the United States".
Garrison believed that the North would break away from the Union, leading to the formation of a new, anti-slavery Constitution. With a free nation at its North, the South would not be able to continue slavery, and the practice would eventually come to an end.
