Abraham Lincoln and the abolitionist of Slavery Essay

Abraham Lincoln and the abolitionist of Slavery - Essay Example Personally, Lincoln believed that the extension or expansion of slavery into the southern part of America would hinder the acquisition of free labor on free lands. Despite his positive thoughts, he came into fierce conflict with the abolitionists as he did not call for an instant end to slavery in the whole nation. It was not until the proposal of the 13th amendment that formed an instrumental platform of the campaign in 1864 general election. The paper examines the reasons why Abraham Lincoln hated slavery with a passion but failed to join the abolitionist camp. Historians can best explain the question as to why Abraham Lincoln did not openly pronounce himself as an abolitionist though he hated slavery by the examination of his personal attitudes and his proposal for ending it. Wyatt-Brown (2009) notes that despite the clarity of historical presentation of facts, the comprehension of Abraham’s position has been confusing. Many individual include him as one of the personalities that openly campaigned for the abolition of slavery. In reality, he knew that slavery was a practice that had no place in the moral laws. Furthermore, according to him the law sanctioned the practice. However, on most occasions he recognized the rights of the slave owners and opted for the retention of slaves. He argued that the constitution guaranteed such a position (Lee 2011). Additionally, before the commencement of the civil war, Abraham made no decision to challenge the rights of the slave owners that he believed were guaranteed by the constitution. Lee (2011) posits that his position sharply distinguished him from the individuals in the abolitionist camp who actively participated in the support of the immediate release of slaves. During that time, all the abolitionists viewed the idea of returning fugitive slaves as unacceptable regardless of what the constitution may guarantee. In most cases, the radical