Abolitionist Twilights: History, Meaning, and the Fate of Racial Egalitarianism, 1865-1909

This study explores the late-in-life reflections of veteran abolitionists, evaluating the stable and shifting meanings of antebellum abolitionism amidst postbellum race relations. It also challenges widely held anti-Black prejudices and equips adherents with the necessary linguistic resources to wage a valiant, sustained philanthropic fight.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 03 October 2023
Publisher: Fordham University Press

In the years and decades following the American Civil War, veteran abolitionists engaged in deep contemplation and prolific writing about the urgent campaign to end slavery immediately. This insightful study delves into the late-in-life reflections of several antislavery memorial and historical writers, examining the evolving and multifaceted meanings of antebellum abolitionism amidst significant shifts in postbellum race relations. By examining veteran abolitionists as movement chroniclers and commemorators and contextualizing their texts within various contexts, Raymond James Krohn further assesses the unwavering humanitarian commitments of activists who considered themselves steadfast friends of the enslaved. Post-1830 abolitionism went beyond the mere opposition to slavery, challenging widely held anti-Black prejudices. It was a movement dedicated to emancipating the enslaved and uplifting people of color, providing its adherents with the necessary linguistic resources to wage a valiant and sustained philanthropic fight.

Abolitionist Twilights explores the impact of the status and conditions of the freed people and their descendants on book-length representations of antislavery individuals and events. By examining the engagement or disengagement of veteran abolitionists in an ongoing African American freedom struggle, this ambitious volume challenges scholarly understandings of abolitionism's history and legacy in terms of racial justice.

Weight: 466g
Dimension: 152 x 230 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781531505608