Why did mary ann shadd become a lawyer

Biography of Mary Ann Shadd

Mary Ann Shadd Carey was born on October 9, 1823, in Wilmington, Delaware. Her parents, Abraham and Harriett Shadd, were free African American citizens. Mary Ann was the oldest of thirteen siblings. Her father played a key role in the functioning of the Underground Railroad, a system that helped enslaved African Americans escape to freedom. He was also an agent for the abolitionist newspaper, "The Liberator," founded by William Lloyd Garrison.

At the age of ten, Mary Ann and her family moved from Delaware to West Chester, Pennsylvania, so that the children could receive an education in a school provided by the international religious movement of Quakers. She remained at this educational institution for six years before returning to Wilmington. In 1840, Shadd returned to West Chester and helped open a school for African American students. She also taught in Norristown, Pennsylvania, and New York City.

When the Fugitive Slave Law was passed in the United States in 1850, allowing for the capture and detention of escaped slaves in territories where slavery had been abolished, Shadd and her brother Isaac fled to Canada and settled in Windsor, Ontario. In Windsor, Shadd founded a school that was open to students of any race, with the support of the American Missionary Association.

Advocating for racial integration, Mary Ann became embroiled in a public dispute with Henry Bibb, a prominent leader in the African American community in Canada. Bibb's newspaper, "The Voice of the Fugitive," attacked Shadd's ideas and undermined her reputation. In 1853, she and Samuel Ringgold Ward founded "The Provincial Freeman" newspaper. After a brief hiatus, Shadd and Ward revived "The Provincial Freeman," which was then published on King Street, Toronto. The newspaper remained in circulation until 1859, addressing moral reform and addressing racial discrimination issues in North America. "The Provincial Freeman" became one of the most widely read newspapers among African Americans prior to the Civil War. Many members of Shadd's family, including her father and sisters, eventually joined her in Canada.

In 1856, Shadd married Thomas F. Cary, a hairdresser from Toronto who was involved in the activities of "The Provincial Freeman." The couple had two children, Sarah and Linton, and lived in Chatham, Ontario. Mary Ann continued her work in the newspaper and taught at the school. In 1858, John Brown, one of the first white abolitionists, held a secret meeting at her brother Isaac's house. In 1861, Shadd published "Voice from Harper's Ferry," a work dedicated to Brown's unsuccessful attempt to seize Harpers Ferry.

After her husband's death in 1860, Shadd and her children returned to the United States. Following the Civil War, she taught in schools for African Americans in Wilmington before relocating to Washington, D.C., where she continued to teach students while studying at Howard University School of Law. In 1883, Mary Ann received her law degree, becoming the second African American woman lawyer in the United States. She passed away in Washington, D.C., on June 5, 1893.

Mary Ann believed that separate churches, schools, and communities for African Americans ultimately undermined the idea of freedom and equality. She advocated for equality and integration for African Americans, free public speaking, the abolition of slavery and the slave trade, and more.