Frederick Douglass was pleased when Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860. Of the three main candidates campaigning for the office, Lincoln was the only one who had spoken out against slavery. But Douglass was disappointed by Lincoln’s inaugural address. Lincoln said he would abide by the Republican platform. He would not interfere with slavery in the South. Although Lincoln was opposed to slavery, his first priority was to preserve the Union.
On April 12, 1861, Confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter, beginning the Civil War. Lincoln called for
