Because they reacted badly to the Fugitive Slave Act, which turned every citizen into an unpaid slave-catcher. And they had read 'Uncle Tom's Cabin', which was written as a protest against it. That novel had drawn attention to the Underground Railroad, the safe-house system that smuggled runawayslaves into Canada.
It required northerners to help recapture runaway slaves which was disliked either on moral grounds as it was for abolitionists but also in some reasons of fear of a Slave Power Conspiracy with the Southern Slaves States holding greater power over Congress than the North, many northerners in the mid 1800s believed many of the politicians in power were under the thumb of Southerners. This act in particular placed fines on people who would not cooperate and jail terms on people who helped fugitives escape. Also, southern slave catchers (aka federal marshals) roamed the North, sometimes capturing free African Americans with little regard for if they were free or fugitive slaves.
they resented federal intervention in the affairs of independent states
== == The Fugitive Slave Law required Northern citizens to help catch escaped slaves. But many Northerners hated the law as much as they hated slavery. They ignored it from the time it was passed by Congress. In this way, the Fugitive Slave Law increased the tension between Northerners and Southerners.
the army was short on men
The Fugitive Slave Law was part of the Compromise of 1850. Its main provision required the return of runaway slaves. Their were penalties for those in northern states who aided escaped slaves.
fugitive slave lawsfugitive slave act
The Fugitive Slave Law.
Some states passed personal liberty laws for runaway slaves.
== == That was The Fugitive Slave Act.
Northerners did not like the Fugitive Slave Act because it required them to assist in the capture and return of runaway slaves, going against their beliefs in anti-slavery. It also denied fugitive slaves the right to a fair trial, leading to widespread opposition and aiding the growth of the abolitionist movement.
People helped runaway slaves for various reasons, including moral beliefs that slavery was wrong, empathy for the plight of the slaves, religious convictions, and a desire to support the abolitionist movement. Some individuals also helped runaway slaves as part of the Underground Railroad network, which aimed to aid escaped slaves in reaching freedom in the North.
Northerners were most pleased that California was admitted as a free state. The south was pleased that the fugitive slave act REQUIRED assistance in capturing runaway slaves or face imprisonment.
It recruited many more Northerners to the Abolitionist cause, and inspired the Underground Railroad - the system of safe-houses by which runaway slaves were smuggled into Canada.
Northerners opposed the Fugitive Slave Act because it required them to cooperate in the capture and return of runaway slaves, even if they were located in free states. Many Northerners viewed the act as a violation of states' rights and as a way to enforce slavery in territories where it was not supported. Additionally, some Northerners opposed the act on moral grounds, believing that it was unjust to send free individuals back into slavery.
Northerners were most pleased that California was admitted as a free state. The south was pleased that the fugitive slave act REQUIRED assistance in capturing runaway slaves or face imprisonment.
The law made it a federal crime to aid runaway slaves and allowed the arrest of escaped slaves. Many northerners openly broke the law, angering slaveholders.
Northerners did not want the slaves to worry about unemployment like factory workers from the North.
Around the early 1800's the Northerners realized how bad slaves really were to keep. A lot of northerners still though it was fine to have slaves.