abolitionism

American  

[ab-uh-lish-uh-niz-uhm] / ˌæb əˈlɪʃ əˌnɪz əm /

noun

1. the principle or policy of abolition, especially ending slavery as an institution in the U.S. and emancipating African Americans.

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abolitionism Cultural  

1. The belief that slavery should be abolished. In the early nineteenth century, increasing numbers of people in the northern United States held that the nation's slaves should be freed immediately, without compensation to slave owners. John Brown, Frederick W. Douglass, William Lloyd Garrison, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Tubman were well-known abolitionists.

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Discover More

Abolitionism in the United States was an important factor leading to the Civil War.

Etymology

Origin of abolitionism

First recorded in 1800–10; abolition + -ism

Explanation

Abolitionism is a political movement centered around ending slavery. Thanks to abolitionism, the Atlantic slave trade, in which kidnapped Central and West Africans were sold as property in Europe and the U.S., finally ended in the 19th century. Abolitionism is a belief that slavery must end. During the height of the slave trade, many Western countries had economies that depended on the free labor of cruelly enslaved people. Even when the practice of slavery was widespread, there were many people committed to abolitionism. The word has a root meaning "abolish," and it can also be used for the political movement to reform, or abolish, the modern prison system.

Example Sentences

In his early 20s, Clay attended Yale, where he for the first time encountered abolitionism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 3, 2025

They cherished the freedom their newly adopted country afforded them and saw the radical movement known as abolitionism as a threat to national unity.

From Slate • Apr. 10, 2025

Kenneth, who is the great-great-great-grandson of Frederick Douglass, added "We taught the students today that Frederick wasn't much older than they are now when he started his career in abolitionism and activism."

From BBC • Apr. 19, 2024

It’s the same impulse that supported 19th century abolitionism and reconstruction after the Civil War.

From Salon • Oct. 24, 2023

There was little freedom of speech for unpopular opinions in America in 1835, when Channing declared that the mob against Garrison had made abolitionism "the cause of Freedom."

From Liberty In The Nineteenth Century by Holland, Frederic May

Related Words

• autonomy
• citizenship
• democracy
• emancipation
• exemption
• immunity
• liberation
• privilege
• release
• relief
• self-determination
• self-government
• sovereignty