Charles Sumner: “Freedom National; Slavery Sectional” Speech

Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts gave his “Freedom National; Slavery Sectional” speech on August 26, 1852, in front of the United States Senate. Sumner called for the repeal of the Fugitive Slave Act, which Congress had passed in September 1850. The Act was a part of the Compromise of 1850 and extended the original 1793 Fugitive Slave Act. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 required the seizure of slaves who had escaped to free territory and their return to their enslavers. Throughout his long career in politics, Sumner was an ardent abolitionist who fought for his cause. Sumner is often remembered for his criticism of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which led to a vicious physical attack on him in the Senate Chamber in 1856.