Fugitive Slave Law

The federal Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 required residents in free states to aid legal authorities in apprehending runaway slaves. Those who assisted escaping slaves faced a $1000 fine (an enormous sum at the time) and six months in jail.

The Fugitive Slave Law also established a separate judicial system to process accused fugitive slaves. Ignoring ordinary legal rules and procedures, the system favored slaveholders, leaving every free or enslaved African American without basic constitutional rights. This total denial of freedom and legal protection enraged Northern blacks and whites, even those without firm antislavery convictions.

Abolitionists and ordinary citizens organized committees, raised funds, assisted the Underground Railroad, and rebelled against the government to rescue and protect accused African Americans. Attorneys tried using the legal system, but only defiance of the law and the legendary Underground Railroad offered effective means of gaining justice.