The Underground Railroad: main aspects of operation

Abstract

The relevance of the research topic. Wherever slavery existed, people attempted to escape, and American history is no exception. Sometimes such efforts took on organized and institutionalized forms, a notable example of which is the so-called Underground Railroad, a secret and organized system of resistance to enslavement by facilitating the escape of African Americans to northern states and other territories. In the chosen context of the research, the Underground Railroad can rightfully be considered one of the first mass movements for human rights not only in the United States, but also in the world.The purpose of the research is to reveal the main aspects of the functioning of the Underground Railroad, since this problem is extremely poorly covered by domestic science.The research is based on a scientific analysis of biographical data, literary sources, legal documents, materials from periodicals and has been carried out by applying the principle of historicism, comparative historical, problem-chronological, biographical and descriptive methods.The research results demonstrate that, in order to prevent human trafficking, individuals, families, and communities with anti-slavery attitude created preconditions for the formation of a large-scale institutionalized system that stretched from the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario east to the Atlantic coast, south to Florida and the Caribbean, and west to the border enclaves of Kansas, Texas, and Mexico.On the basis of the research results, it has been concluded that the term «Underground Railroad», although it does not reflect the specifics of its activities, denotes a very real historical phenomenon. The organization and activities of the Underground Railroad became an important component in the difficult task of eradicating slavery in the United States.