Nat Turner’s Rebellion in 1831 sparked a wave of anti-slavery advocacy in Virginia. At UVA, the Jefferson Society elected Merritt Robinson to deliver a speech at the Founder’s Day celebration in the Rotunda in 1832. Robinson used his speech to argue for the emancipation of slaves in Virginia. He made the case that slavery was a moral wrong by quoting Washington, Jefferson, and other founding fathers. The faculty was outraged.