Dr. Paul Polgar explains how the nation moved from very limited anti-slavery sentiment before the 1760s to a more vibrant anti-slavery posture in the 1780s and 1790s.  He describes the difference between those who were against the Atlantic slave trade and those that had moral and economic arguments to end slavery.  The talk covers early manumission laws and how the political creed of the American Revolution had an impact on the anti-slavery movement.  Dr. Polgar is an expert on the 1790 Congressional debate on slavery and race.  He explains the petitions that were brought by the Pennsylvania Abolition Society and the Quakers.  He covers the pro-slavery argument of those in the states more dependent on slavery such as South Carolina and Georgia.  Polgar includes an explanation of the role some of the Founding Fathers played in the early debate to end slavery to include Franklin, Hamilton and Washington.  He finishes with a discussion on how the later abolition societies benefited from the early arguments and work of the individuals in the Revolutionary period.

HOST:  Rob Mellon

FEATURED BREW:  Goose Oktoberfest, Goose Island Beer Company

BOOK:  Standard-Bearers of Equality: America's First Abolition Movement
https://www.amazon.com/Standard-Bearers-Equality-Abolition-Published-University/dp/1469653931

MUSIC:  Bones Fork
https://bonesfork.com/