After many revolutions were sparked all across the world, the attention was then turned to women and slaves
Began in the 18th century, by freed slaves and Christian moralists
William Wilberforce, elected to a Parliament seat in 1780, fought to have the slave trade abolished
This trade was officially abolished in 1807, and was eventually legally discontinued in North America in 1808, but the trade was still illegally done until 1867
The abolishment of slavery itself was much more difficult, as slaves were viewed as property rather than an actual person.
Planters and merchants were strongly opposed to abolishing slaves, as they were plentiful and inexpensive
Slavery was abolished in South America when it became independent from Spain
Simón Bolívar freed all slaves that joined his army
In 1833, Parliament provided heavy compensation to slave owners and abolished slavery
Eventually France (1848), the United States (1865), Cuba (1886), and Brazil (1888) followed suit
While African-Americans had freedoms, the stigma of them being the lower-class was hard to erase. They were considered subordinate, and given lower-class jobs well into the twentieth century (and still can be seen in some instances today)
Women
After slavery was abolished, many women decided it was time for them to have equal rights as well.
An English writer Mary Astell used the ideas about absolute sovereignty that were applied to the state, and instead applied them to the home.
If all men were born free, were all women born slaves?
Mary Wollstonecraft
Published an essay entitled A Vindication of the Rights of Women
Argued that women possessed the same rights Locke granted men
Argued on a woman’s right to an education
In France, the French Revolution allowed for women to have public education and allowed wives to own a share of property or get a divorce
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
An abolitionist who went to London for an anti-slavery assembly, when she realized that women were not allowed to attend
Frustrated, she created the Seneca Falls Convention in Seneca Falls, New York
There, feminists pass 12 resolutions that demand women get equal treatment as men.
Some main demands were the right to vote, work in professional occupations, and participate in public affairs.
This is a timeline of all of the major events that happen throughout the late 16th and 17th century as both slaves and women fight to gain equal rights as white men with property.
Synthesis
The fight for the right to vote is similar to the fight women are currently fighting: for equal wages, freedom of choice, and fighting oppression from obstacles that society place in front of them. They both are at odds with society, and began as a minority which grew into something that changed the world.
Works Cited "Abolitionism in the United Kingdom." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. "Elizabeth Cady Stanton." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. Galli, Mark. "William Wilberforce." Christian History | Learn the History of Christianity & the Church. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. "John Locke." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. "Mary Astell." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. "Mary Wollstonecraft." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. "Seneca Falls Convention." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017. "Wollstonecraft, Mary. 1792. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman." Wollstonecraft, Mary. 1792. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.