Was John Brown A Terrorist Essay

He was a person who went to great lengths to show his help, however he was not secretive about it. He wrote a newspaper call the Tocsin of Liberty, in which he not only published the first names of the people he helped to freedom, but also the names of their slave masters. Because of this many slave owners had arrest warrants written for his imprisonment (Able Brown).

“Every villain is a hero in his own mind,” quoted Tom Hiddleston, an English actor best known for playing Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. From this quote it is understood that every person perceives “right” and “wrong” differently and will act according to their perception. People consider a person as either a hero or villain by looking at their actions. John Brown, was a white American abolitionist who believed that armed rebellion was the only way to overthrow slavery in the United States. With the evidence provided with different resources, such as the article John Brown: Villain or Hero? by Steven Mintz, it can be seen that John Brown is a villain.

Why people believed that he would be a hero is because, they didn't know what was happening on his ship or in America so they thought he we being honest and believed that he was the first one to fine America. But many others believed that he was a villain because he was taking credit for something he

In the eyes of many African-Americans, John Brown was a great hero because he was fighting for them in his stance against slavery. There is a famous painting titled “Last Moments of John Brown” in which he is being led to his execution and where a black woman is holding up her baby for him to kiss. This painting is symbolic for Brown’s ultimate sacrifice and what he meant to the black slave community. Brown was willing to make the sacrifice of death for them and for their freedom. This painting

Now everyone agrees that John Brown main goal was to abolish the slavery in the south, but some believe that he is a hero for dying for his cause or being a martyr.

He fought long and hard for what “he believed with certitude was a sin against God.” (Bordewich, 3). Of the many words used to describe Brown, one that would come up occasionally was hero. But “it wasn't until the 1970’s that John Brown the hero re-emerged.” (Chowder, 6). Two studies done by Stephen B. Oates and Richard Owen Boyer came to a conclusion that “Brown was stubborn, monomaniacal, egotistical, self-righteous, and sometimes deceitful; yet he was, at certain times, a great man.”(Chowder,6). Also, “among African- Americans, Brown’s heroism has never been in doubt. (Chowder, 6) Many strong black figures commended Brown’s actions in various ways. “Frederick Douglass praised him in print; W. E. B. Du Bois published a four-hundred word celebration of him in 1909; Malcolm X said he wouldn't mind being with white people if they were like John Brown; Alice Walker, in a poem, even wondered if in an earlier incarnation she herself hadn’t once been John Brown.” (Chowder, 6). Harriet Tubman “thought Brown was the greatest white man who had ever lived.” (Bordewich, 5). He even “began comparing himself to Jesus Christ. And he was not alone.” (Chowder, 5). Though he was described as “crazy” for a large part of his life, the fact that he was remembered by so many in such a positive manner, makes him a hero.

Firstly, I think he failed because he was too quick to anger. Many people knew that John Brown had a temper. His anger issues may also be connected to when he killed five southern settlers and his removement from Kansas. Other abolitionist of his time like the Grimke Sisters and Harriet Tubman were peaceful and indirect with their ways. The key to success wasn’t straight out rebellion but rather being peaceful and quiet; and slow and steady. The Grimke Sisters spoke out strongly and gained a following. Harriet Tubman didn’t go killing people to free slaves, but was sneaky about it and freed slaves one by

“John Brown (May 9, 1800 – December 2, 1859) was a radical abolitionist from the United States, who advocated and practiced armed insurrection as a means to abolish slavery for good. He led the Pottawatomie Massacre in 1856 in Bleeding Kansas and made his name in the unsuccessful raid at Harpers Ferry in 1859. He was tried and executed for treason against the

In most of his letters from jail, John Brown is attempting to comfort his family and friends and assure them that he has no regrets. He constantly mentions how happy he is, saying he fought for what he believed in. In a letter to E.B. of R.I., he says, “I do not feel conscious of guilt in taking up arms” (John Brown’s Raid on Harpers Ferry, pg. 91). Then, in a letter to Rev. H L Vaill, he says, “I am not as yet in the main at all disappointed. I have been a good deal disappointed as it regards myself in not keeping up to my own plans; but I now feel entirely reconciled to that even: for Gods plan, was Infinitely better” (John Brown’s Raid on Harpers Ferry, pg. 94). It is clear that Brown feels justified in his actions because he believes they were for the good of the country and enslaved people.

Brown had a great faith in God. Success had eluded him up to this point. He had sired 20 children and had gone through two wives, but he still felt unfulfilled. In 1846, Brown was working as a wool merchant but nothing ever came of it. Before 1855, Brown had gone through a series of lawsuits and bankruptcies that halted his success. Gerrit Smith, a philanthropist friend of Brown's, was persuaded into giving a portion of the 120,000 acres of land he owned in upstate New York to Brown. This land would be open to refugee negroes. Brown lived on this land as a farmer for some time before realizing that people were just taking advantage of him.

John Brown is not a terrorist. The acts he committed at Harper’s Ferry and Pottawatommie Creek were not acts of terrorism because they lack the inspiration of fear into his enemies. He may have committed acts that were tragic, but just because someone kills someone else does not mean they are a terrorist.

Thesis: John Brown was a man full of honor and passion when it came to the abolishment of slavery. Not only that, but he was a man who believed that his actions were justified by his beliefs and social standpoint. Even though, he was a strong willed man; capable of standing up for his philosophies on life, he was a man who acted upon his emotions, and killed, interrogated, and terrorized towns and people. Your beliefs and morality do not justify the amount of terror that you cause, and it does not justify the amount of blood you spill; John Brown was a terrorist.

Others might say Jackson was the hero of the common man because he thought that everyone has the rights to government jobs and should be treated the same. Document

The first of the three reasons that John Brown became a violent protester to slavery are as follows. In his mind, John believed that he was fulfilling their struggle for freedom in terms of the revolutionary soldier and puritan that he had descended from (3). In other words, the fight was already in him, he was trying to do good because he already saw what the puritans had went through to achieve their freedom. It was in his blood so to speak. The second of the three reasons is that John believed that God had called him to make do this for the slaves. John Brown was a very religious man as it talks about him going to church and evening going as far as making his children write down their sins they committed in the day. (17) The third and final reason for John browns turn to violence is the fact that he did not believe that a non violent tactic would work against the pro slavery people. The massacre of Pottawatomie was a true example of what John Brown believed was the correct way to handle this problem of slavery.

America’s greatest hero because of his involvement in saving the Union and the emancipator of