THE LIBERATOR

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The Liberator, a weekly anti-slavery newspaper, became the leading publication in the fight to end the practice of slavery. The newspaper compiled essays from leading abolitionists of the day, like John Rankin and Frederick Douglass, that changed the conversation about slavery. The Liberator gained a large following in the northern states, state legislatures, governor’s mansions, Congress, and the White House. Supporters paid to have the newspaper delivered to influential public officials. 

 

The Liberator was openly Christian in its message. The essays published in it talked about how Christian people cannot tolerate slavery in any form. The logo of the newspaper itself contained Christian symbolism. A quote from Jesus in the Bible is included-- “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Also a coin in the middle of the logo shows Jesus standing between a black man and a white man, who are kneeling on equal footing, with a cross in the background. The coin also has a phrase around its edge-- “I come to break the bonds of the oppressed.” This is another quote from Jesus in the Bible, part of Jesus’s mission statement for his ministry on earth.

 

The editor of The Liberator, William Lloyd Garrison, was a sincere Christian who used Scripture from the Bible in his writings and speeches to expose the hypocrisy of slavery as against God-given freedom and man being made in the image of God.