The Liberator Table of Contents The Liberator Introduction Fast Facts Related Content Media Images More More Articles On This Topic Contributors Article History Home Lifestyles & Social Issues Newspapers & Magazines The Liberator American newspaper Actions Cite verified Cite While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Select Citation Style MLA APA Chicago Manual of Style Copy Citation Share Share Share to social media Facebook Twitter URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Liberator-American-newspaper Give Feedback External Websites Feedback Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Feedback Type Select a type (Required) Factual Correction Spelling/Grammar Correction Link Correction Additional Information Other Your Feedback Submit Feedback Thank you for your feedback Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Join Britannica's Publishing Partner Program and our community of experts to gain a global audience for your work! External Websites American Antiquarian Society - The News Media and the Making of America, 1730-1865 - The Liberator Print Cite verified Cite While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Select Citation Style MLA APA Chicago Manual of Style Copy Citation Share Share Share to social media Facebook Twitter URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Liberator-American-newspaper Feedback External Websites Feedback Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Feedback Type Select a type (Required) Factual Correction Spelling/Grammar Correction Link Correction Additional Information Other Your Feedback Submit Feedback Thank you for your feedback Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Join Britannica's Publishing Partner Program and our community of experts to gain a global audience for your work! External Websites American Antiquarian Society - The News Media and the Making of America, 1730-1865 - The Liberator By The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica • Edit History Table of Contents The Liberator , weekly newspaper of abolitionist crusader William Lloyd Garrison for 35 years (January 1, 1831?December 29, 1865). It was the most influential antislavery periodical in the pre- Civil War period of U.S. history. Although The Liberator , published in Boston , could claim a paid circulation of only 3,000, it reached a much wider audience with its uncompromising advocacy of immediate emancipation for the millions of Black Americans held in bondage throughout the South. In the North, Garrison’s message of moral suasion challenged moderate reformers to apply the principles of the Declaration of Independence to all people, regardless of colour. Fearful slaveholders in the South, erroneously assuming that The Liberator represented the majority opinion of Northerners, reacted militantly by defending slavery as a “positive good” and by legislating ever more stringent measures to suppress all possible opposition to its “peculiar institution.” Garrison’s publication further altered the course of the American antislavery movement by insisting that abolition, rather than African colonization, was the answer to the problem of slavery. See also abolitionism . The Liberator A copy of The Liberator , November 23, 1855. Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington, D.C.; gift from the Liljenquist Family Collection (object no. 2016.166.41.8) William Lloyd Garrison William Lloyd Garrison. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen .