FREE ESSAY ON ALLIES FOR FREEDOM

ALLIES FOR FREEDOM

Introduction
The reason I choose "Allies For Freedom" is because I am very interested in slaves and
how they gained their freedom. I also wanted to learn about the famous " john brown" and
everything this man did to change history. This book looked interesting to me because it
covers not only just john brown but also other allies for the slaves. I wanted to see the
different views of the people during slavery. This book also interested me because I knew
he was raised in Ohio and I thought to relate to his views from being born and raised in
Ohio also.
This is a very important subject in history. Slavery changed American history and how we
view things today. This book helps us see and understand that not all people were for
slavery and there were people willing to give or risk their lives to do something they
believe in. the main person this book is about is john brown. To me he is a hero that
opened up opportunities for many blacks and slaves. John brown was a main leader for
abolitionist. He led Harpers Ferry with 21 men. They cut telegraph wires, and then made
their attack. First the captured the federal armory and arsenal. Then the Hall's Rifle
Works, and supplier of weapons to the government. Then they got 60 citizens of the town
and held them as hostages. Hoping that their slaves help them in the fight, but none did.
Brown also led a murder of five proslavery men. He led many abolitionists like himself in
the fight against slavery.
Benjamin Quarles, the author of " allies for freedom", was a noted author, editor, and
historian, and the first African American to be published in what became the journal of
American history. He has written many books on slavery and abolitionists. He tried,
through his books and writings, to show the Declaration of Independence and the rights it
gave to the blacks and slaves. Benjamin Quarles is a very experienced author. He has
written many book and novels on the topic. 
I think that the purpose that the author was trying to give the reader was to inform and
educate them about slavery and abolitionists. The author tells about john brown and how
he stood up for slaves and the equality of all men. Benjamin Quarles points out all the
problems about slavery and America during this time. This book informs us on how slaves
were treated during that time. But it also tells us about the many men, including john
brown, who helped the blacks win their freedom.
Main body
In the beginning of this book it starts off by telling about john browns day and how it
became. On august 17, 1906, hundreds of admires assembled at the john brown "fort" to
commemorate the hundredth anniversary of john browns birth and the fiftieth jubilee of
his blood skirmish at Osawatomie, Kansas, over the issue of the slavery in the
territories. The one hundred or so participants in this john brown's day were members of
a one-year-old black civil rights organization known as the Niagara movement, its first
meeting was held at Niagara falls that summer.
All the people gathered outside the engine house, the pilgrims listened to prayer,
followed by a speech from Richard t. greener. People had to stand through this whole
speech while it was raining. After the half hour speech, the group marched around the
fort single file. They sang "the battle hymn of the republic," supplementing it with
additional verses from the John Brown song.
Anthon hall had given speeches before on john brown. On Decoration Day in 1881, Frederick
Douglas had an oration on the hero of Harpers Ferry. 
On john browns day, Du bois gave a history of slavery and Brown's relationship to it. He
opened Withan analytical study of slavery in modern times and the cause of its growth in
the United States. Du Bois was on ground familiar to him, having written a pioneer study
on the suppression of the African slave trade. He said brown lived in a world in which
things were eternally right or eternally wrong, with slavery obviously in the latter
class. Du bois then proceeded to describe the essential elements of browns thinking and
planning in his crusade against slavery.
A speaker closed with the assertion that browns real contribution to his times was his
effort to contain evil. Du bois ended by saying of the high commitment, just as brown
sacrificed himself, he said, so must he and his listeners "sacrificed our work, our
money, and our positions, in order to beat back the evil of the world." The applause
lasted for a long time.
In 1881 or 1882 the most prominent blacks of his day, george Washington Williams, then
working on a lengthy history of negra Americans, looked for information on john brown
from mrs. George l. sterns, widow of a brown benefactor. In her long letter to reply, mrs
sterns related for the first time the manner in which john brown had come to write a
brief account of his boyhood. She told a story that brown, while a visitor at the sterns
home just outside Boston in January 1857, had been asked by thirteen-year-old hennery to
tell him what sort of a boy he had been.
When brown was thirteen, he and a clave became friends. The black boy was about his own
age and, added brown, was fully his equal, if not more. The slave own treated brown in
the kindest and most treatment and was heartless and cruel to the slave boy. This led
brown to much sober reflection on the wretched, hopeless condition of the parentless
slave children, raising a question in his mind as to whether they had a father even in
god.
He first verifiable reference by brown to blacks came late in 1832 in a long letter to
his brother, Frederick. Writing from Randolph Township in northwestern Pennsylvania,
where ha server as postmaster, the thirty-four-year-old brown said that he had been
tiring to devise ways to help those in bondage.
Browns letter also spoke of a long-held interest he had in opening a school for blacks,
expressing the opinion that in Randolph there would be no strong opinion that in Randolph
there would be no strong opposition to such a move.
When brown moved into northern Ohio, he came into a strong abolitionist region of his
boyhood years. The Western Reserve was congenitally hospitable to runaways; its ports
received them and then spiriting them across lake Erie to Ontario and to freedom.
Detesting slave-catchers, the villagers of Hudson were in the habit of signaling their
arrival by loudly tolling the fire bell.
During the twelve months after he left the Kansas territory, brown, in chronic need,
spent most of his time raising money. Traveling even more than was his wont, he sought
financial backers like George l. Stearns who, sharing his convictions, might be induced
to share their means. To this end he spoke at meetings, generally in New England, with
short talks "an idea of things in Kansas"
At the Douglass home brown spent most of his time drafting a constitution and writing
letters. Browns brainchild, a "provisional constitution and ordinances for the people of
the united states," was a document comprised of a preamble and forty-eight articles.
Brown kept its contents to himself, preferring not to unveil it prior to a ratification
convention he was planning to hold in three months.
When brown traveled east in the early spring of 1859 the main thing on his mind was money
for Harpers Ferry. Manpower, in his analysis, would be less of a problem, particularly
the enlisting of black recruits.
Conclusion
The author did well in informing the reader what all was happening at the time this story
is taking place. It talks about john browns life and how he helped change the lives of
all blacks and how he helped them gain equality. I think this authors main point was to
teach the reader about how there were many people out there trying to help the slaves at
this tragic time. The main person in this book is john brown and how he gave his life for
what he believed in.
I think that everything the author talked about helped me understand more about how john
browns led his life and how he helped many people in need. I learned about how many
people were behind brown and all that he is doing. He is a very respected man today. This
book taught me a lot about john brown and how the blacks had to live their lives.
This book could benefit anyone who is willing to read it. If you want to read a good book
about this topic, slaves and john brown I would suggest reading this book. I thought it
was interesting to see how brown stood up for what he believed in and gave his own life
to benefit others.