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What were the abolitionists' beliefs?
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The abolitionists believed that all people were equal in God's sight; the souls of black folks were as valuable as those of whites; for one of God's children to enslave another was a violation of the Higher Law, even if it was sanctioned by the Constitution. "Stressing the Yankee Protestant ideals of self-improvement, industry, and thrift, most abolitionists—most notably William Lloyd Garrison—condemned slavery as a lack of control over one's own destiny and the fruits of one's labor.