“End of Slavery Summit” on BrightU: How 19th-century abolitionists preached the end of government before anarchism even had a name

• On Day 16 of the “End of Slavery Summit,” William H. Douglas discussed how radical abolitionists like William Lloyd Garrison and Adin Ballou rejected coercive governments before anarchism was formally defined, arguing only divine law justified human freedom.
• Douglas explained why Garrison and Ballou viewed the state as usurping God’s authority, advocating non-compliance (e.g., tax refusal, self-governing communities) and framing freedom as a divine right.
• Garrison’s extreme stance (rejecting voting, the Constitution) alienated mainstream abolitionists and modern historians, challenging the myth of benevolent government.
• Douglas linked historical state violence (slavery) to contemporary overreach (COVID-19 lockdowns, taxation), arguing both rely on coercion and control.
• Douglas shared his plans for launching of The Liberator 2.0 that aims to revive Garrison’s legacy, promoting disobedience, education and “moral suasion” to combat state oppression.

On Day 16 of the “End of Slavery Summit,” aired on August 10, historian and writer William H. Douglas, founder of The Latter-day Liberator, discussed how radical abolitionists like William Lloyd Garrison and Adin Ballou rejected coercive governments before anarchism was formally defined, arguing only divine law justified human freedom.

“Garrison was writing anarchist ideas in the 1830s, he just didn’t call it that,” Douglas explained. “By 1838, the New England Non-Resistance Society’s Declaration of Sentiments was as anarchistic as it gets, rejecting all human governments as illegitimate because they’re rooted in violence.”

Long before Pierre-Joseph Proudhon coined the term “anarchism” in 1840, Garrison and Ballou declared that only God’s law could justify human freedom. These fiery preachers of “non-resistance” argued that any system built on violence, whether slavery or the state, was inherently evil.

Garrison, best known for his abolitionist newspaper The Liberator, went further than most of his peers, condemning the U.S. Constitution as a “covenant with death and an agreement with hell” for its complicity in slavery. Alongside thinkers like Adin Ballou and Lysander Spooner, he framed freedom as a divine right, arguing that no earthly authority could override God’s law.

“Christian anarchism teaches that the only authority is Jesus Christ,” Douglas said. “If the state claims power to cage, tax, or kill you, it’s usurping God’s role.” This philosophy, he noted, was not passive, it demanded active resistance. Abolitionists like Ballou experimented with self-governing communities like Hopedale, while others refused taxes or jury duty, seeing cooperation with the state as sinful.

Despite their influence, these radicals were sidelined even in their own time. “Garrison was too extreme for most abolitionists,” Douglas noted. “He rejected voting, political parties, even the Constitution because all of it relied on coercion.” Modern historians, he argued, ignore them because their critique undermines the myth of benevolent government. “We’re taught to see the state as society’s savior, not its oppressor.”

The parallels to modern tyranny are stark. Douglas pointed to Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdowns: “Governments treated us like criminals under house arrest. That’s the state’s nature, it always grows, always demands more control.” Just as slavery depended on state violence, today’s systems, taxation, surveillance, licensing, rest on the same threat: “Obey, or be caged or killed.”

The solution, Douglas argued, isn’t reform but disobedience and education. “The state exists because people believe in it. Stop paying taxes, stop obeying unjust laws, starve the beast.” Yet lasting change requires moral persuasion, a tactic Garrison called “moral suasion.” “You can’t force people to be free,” Douglas said. “But if they see the truth, they’ll liberate themselves.”

The interview closed with an announcement: Douglas and host Cory Endrulat are launching The Liberator 2.0, a revival of Garrison’s newspaper to spread these ideas. “We’re not just fighting chattel slavery anymore,” Endrulat said. “We’re fighting the slavery of the state.”

As Douglas put it: “The abolitionists knew freedom wasn’t about nicer masters. It was about no masters at all.” Their forgotten struggle, a fusion of faith and anarchism, offers a roadmap for dismantling modern tyranny.

More from Day 16 of the “End of Slavery Summit”

Day 16 of the “End of Slavery Summit” doesn’t end there. Here’s a summary of the topics tackled by other speakers:

Joel Charron discussed:

• The importance of inner healing, shadow work and self-improvement as foundational steps before taking external action. He argued that overcoming trauma and ego is critical to breaking free from systemic conditioning.
• The need for strong local networks, co-ops and skill-sharing (e.g., farmer’s markets, forest schools) rather than relying on online activism alone. Charron shared a story about convincing local businesses to adopt privacy crypto as real-world proof of concept.
• His view on independent media figures who focus on fear-mongering or preaching to the choir without encouraging tangible action. He advocated for leading by example (e.g., growing food, teaching skills) over endless theorizing.
• Strategies for systemic change, with Charron favoring anarcho-capitalist principles (voluntary trade, no rulers) while Endrulat framed abolitionism as a moral imperative to end all forms of slavery. Both agreed that transitioning to freedom requires decentralized, community-based solutions.

Derrick Broze discussed:

• His upbringing in a family affected by addiction and incarceration, his struggles with substance abuse and how his time in prison became a pivotal awakening. Broze’s experiences led him to question systemic injustice and embrace sobriety, self-education and activism.
• His view on mass incarceration, emphasizing that many inmates are jailed for victimless crimes (e.g., drug offenses, child support disputes). He argued prisons fail to rehabilitate and often worsen trauma, advocating for alternative solutions rooted in healing and community support.
• The growth of the Freedom Cells network, decentralized mutual aid groups focused on self-sufficiency, skill-sharing and building parallel systems outside state control. The movement expanded globally during COVID-19 as people sought alternatives to government overreach.
• The balance between grassroots organizing and ideological clarity. Broze stressed the importance of clear principles (e.g., non-violence, apolitical focus) while adapting messaging to reach diverse audiences, including those new to concepts like anarchism or natural law.
• His view on “conspiratainment” outlets that prioritizing fear over solutions. Broze highlighted the need for action-oriented content, while Endrulat advocated for movements that combine education (e.g., flags, symbols) with real-world community building to inspire generational change.

David Icke discussed:

• Why slavery persists today through systemic control mechanisms, such as financial dependency, forced compliance (e.g., COVID-19 lockdowns) and centralized authority.
• Why true slavery is mental, with people conditioned to accept authority without question or act out of fear. He linked this to historical patterns where the masses enable their own oppression.
• A future where artificial intelligence (AI) could dominate human thought, eliminating free will. He referenced figures like Ray Kurzweil to highlight plans for AI-driven mind control.
• Why freedom requires rejecting rigid identities (e.g., race, religion) and recognizing the self as infinite consciousness. This shift, he argued, dissolves divisions and resistance to tyranny.
• Why systemic change hinges on mass non-compliance. Icke cited the poll tax protests in the U.K. as proof that unified refusal undermines authority. Endrulat tied this to education and grassroots action.

Want to know more?

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Sources include:

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