Introduction
Slavery became a contested question after the end of armed conflict between the United States of America and the United Mexican States in 1848. After the end of the war, United States of America gained control of a large piece of the western land (Mexican Cession). Most American citizens had questioned whether the government would allow slavery in the newly acquired states. The issue of slavery in the Mexican Cession became a contested debate in the Congress. Disagreement arose between antislavery advocates and proslavery advocates. Anti-slavery advocates wanted to keep slavery out of the Mexican Cession while pro-slavery advocates aimed at expanding slavery in the western land by strengthening slavery laws. The debate on slavery was heating up forcing the Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850. The Act was a compromise between antislavery advocates in the north and proslavery advocates in the south (Harrold, 2015) . The Act required that escaped slaves captured should be returned to their owners and slave catchers to be provided with money or “bounties.” Slavery was a problem that turned into epidemic levels. Abolitionists such as John Brown was attempted to destroy the institution of slavery through an armed revolt by raiding the federal armory in Harpers Ferry (Bickford & Schuette, 2016) . The Fugitive Slave Act and Brown's raid are controversial elements in the 1850s that led to a fierce debate about the issue of slavery.
Strengths and Weaknesses of the Events
The fundamental cause of American Civil War was slavery. The Fugitive Slave Act did not help reduce the tension between abolitionist and pro-slavery activists. The weakness of the Act is that it made become a political, social, economic, and moral issue that further divided the citizens of America (Filler, 2017). Slavery also remained a significant sectional issue between the North and the South. The North viewed the Act as a "slave power" conspiracy and nicknamed the Act "Bloodhound Law." Fears and tensions were heightened in the nation, and people began revolting against the federal government. Slave catchers mistreated slaves who tried to escape and even shot at them whenever they attempted to resist capture. The Act weakened the unity of American because it was very controversial. The law required citizens to assist in capturing escaping slaves. Any person who is unwilling to assist or helps a fugitive escape was fined or prosecuted in a court of law (Harrold , 2015). Slavery fugitives claiming to be freemen were denied a right to access fair trial, and all their cases were placed under federal jurisdiction.
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Though the Act helped the government to temporarily meet its goals of preventing southern states from seceding from the Union, northerners became more determined to end slavery. Instead of the Act dampening the fires of division in the nation it further fuelled its embers leading to the American Civil War (Filler, 2017). John Brown’s raid did not help did not help reduce the existing tension in the country but further `fuelled the tension thus pushing the nation to the Civil War. The raid created the idea of slave rebellion could be extremely deadly thus causing a great deal of fear in the South. Northerner's, on the other hand, applauded Brown and condoned what he did. The Northerners mourned his death and viewed him as a martyr. The praising Brown showed that Northerners were more determined to end slavery. The South became dismayed and more antagonized against the North. Southerners placed their focus on a small group of Northerners who held up Brown as a hero while most disapproved of what he had done (Bickford & Schuette, 2016) . Hence voices promoting compromise solution between the two rival sides began to fade. After Abraham Lincoln was elected as President, most Southerners believed that the promise to unite the country was futile and secession becomes a reality for Southern states. John Brown's raid, therefore, enlarged the existing division and affected the outcome of Civil War.
The Fugitive Slaves Act and John Brown's raid occurred at a time when America was at its vulnerable point as the Federal government tried to unite the nation. The Union had a vision of making all the states united, but the division in the country caused by the issue of slavery made it difficult to accomplish this mission. The Fugitive Act which led to a compromise on the subject of slavery between the North and the South only succeeded to worsen the situation. John Brown's raid also increased the division between the rival states and antagonized them more (Bickford & Schuette, 2016). As a result of the two events, the nation was faced with a lot of political and social dilemmas. Lawmakers on both sides of the division were in a dilemma on which side to support as any attempt to talk about the situation would make them seen as being biased thus further worsening the situation.
Organizations such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People alienated itself from talking about the touchy subject of John Brown’s raid. In their convention held in 1959, the organization dishonored the occasion and suspended one of its branch presidents who declared that Negroes should meet violence with violence in defending their lives and homes. Anti-slavery politicians such as Abraham Lincoln and Seward decline to talk on the issue of Brown ad dissociated themselves from releasing any sentiments about his execution ( Kretsinger-Harries, 2014) . The Southerners and slave-owners were unsure of the position of political leaders.
Political and Social Dilemmas caused by the Events
The two events also created a social dilemma in the United States. The Fugitive Act passed was demeaning to slave and the colored population. The freed slaves in the North felt threatened by the Act and doubted if they were free and had feared that the conspiracy about slavery would heighten. Whites, especially in the North were against slavery and the fact that the law intended to prosecute and fine anyone aiding slaves did not go well with them. They were therefore in a dilemma to decide whether to support the bill or not (Harrold, 2015) . Citizens like Brown were fed up with murder and treason that was prevalent in the nation after the compromise. American society was in a dilemma on the best way to tackle the issue of slavery. Brown left a slip of paper before execution with information reading that he was quite sure that the crimes of the guilty land will only be purged away with blood. There was a social dilemma among people to end the issue of slavery either by peaceful negotiations or by engaging in an armed revolt or a political uprising (Bickford & Schuette, 2016) .
How the Separate Events Were Linked Together
The two separate events managed to cause tension in the nation because they were linked together by the issue of slavery which had consumed the United States. The founding fathers of the United States of America had delivered sentiment to end to prohibit slavery in the constitution. Failure of the law to address the issue of slavery made it festers, causing enough friction between the North and the South and created the conflagration that consumed the nation (Kretsinger-Harries, 2014) . The Fugitive Slavery Act and John Brown's raid were aimed at addressing the issue of slavery in the country.
The compromise aimed at bringing a common ground between anti-slavery activists and pro-slavery activists. Brown’s raid on the other hand aimed at destroying the institution of slavery that had plagued America. These two events failed to address the issue efficiently and only managed to create more tensions in the country. Civil War was therefore inevitable as the North and the South was unable to resolve their differences amicably.
Historical Actors in the Events
The Civil War eventually happened and helped shaped the history of the United States by ending slavery. Some political actors tried hard to prevent the war from ever occurring. However, they only succeeded in worsening the situation. Colonel Robert E. Lee and Lieutenant J. E. B. Stuart led U.S marines that rounded Brown's men, overran them, killing ten of Brown's men, including two of his sons. They also managed to capture Brown. Brown was eventually tried for treason and murder by the state of Virginia (Kretsinger-Harries, 2014) . The two marines played an essential role in influencing the events of the Civil War. Capturing Brown led to his execution which made the North held him up as a hero and made them more determined to abolish slavery in the Nation. Brown's death, therefore, worsened the relationship between the North and the South and escalated tensions in the country.
Stephen Douglas, Illinois Senator, spearheaded the formulation of the compromise which was initially suggested by Kentucky Senator Henry Clay (the Great Compromiser) (Filler, 2017). The Compromise composed of five separate Bills including the Fugitive Slave Act. The Act was passed to end the rift between the South and the North on the issue of slavery. Most American believed that the Act would stand as a truce to end the ongoing white-hot sectional conflict. Clay's hopes that Compromise would make the nation United were wrong as the Compromise inflamed the passion of the North to end slavery. The Act thereby succeeded in paving way for unprecedented violence in the United States which culminated into the Civil War that ended the lives of over 600, 000 Americans.
References
Bickford III, J. H., & Schuette, L. N. (2016). Trade Books' Historical Representation of the Black Freedom Movement, Slavery Through Civil Rights. Journal of Children's Literature , 42 (1), 20.
Filler, L. (2017). The Crusade Against Slavery: 1830-1860 . Routledge.
Harrold, S. (2015). The Rise of Aggressive Abolitionism: Addresses to the Slaves . University Press of Kentucky.
Kretsinger-Harries, A. C. (2014). Commemoration Controversy: The Harpers Ferry Raid Centennial as a Challenge to Dominant Public Memories of the US Civil War. Rhetoric & Public Affairs , 17 (1), 67-103.
