Section B: American option The origins of the Civil War, 1820-61. Read the sources and then answer both parts of the question. Source A I believe that the Republicans are a party of ethnic hatred and cultural tyranny. Much of their support comes from anti-immigrant extremists. I see the Republican Party as similar to another party that has emerged recently, the anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic party, better known as the Know-Nothings. Both aim to exclude the foreign-born from political life in the United States. I see Abolitionism, Know-Nothingism and Republicanism and all other 'isms' to be in alliance. The growth of Republicanism demonstrates the powerful influence of sheer prejudice in much of the northern electorate. We must end our own destructive divisions and unite to defeat this new and growing force. From a letter by Stephen Douglas to a leading Southern Democrat, October 1858. Source B Despite the fact that this new party is one of dishonourable coalitions, shallow expediency and bad leadership by dishonest politicians, it should still be a success. Their Philadelphia Platform of 1856 is to be praised as a statement of essential truths. They did not turn a deaf ear to the millions of blacks in chains. They supported the beliefs of our Founding Fathers and argued that slavery and freedom cannot exist together under the Constitution. They laid down a few clear principles and proposed a few practical measures. These were sufficiently broad for all anti-slavery men, as well as those who were wary of the idea of emancipation of black people, to agree on. They therefore deserve my support and I now stand with the Republican Party. From a speech by a member of the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania, who had been a member of both the Whig and the Free-Soil parties, October 1858. Source C In the past I felt that southern slaves were happier and better off than the free black people in the North. I also considered the principles of the abolitionists false, foolish, wicked and unchristian. However, since the brutal attack on Senator Sumner on the floor of the Senate, which has left him near death, by a supporter of slavery, I have reconsidered my views. I fear the shameless brutality of the Southern aristocratic slave-owners may drive me into not only abolitionism but also into supporting the Republican ticket. The barbarism demonstrated by the Fugitive Slave Law has also driven me into this view. I now see Southern slavery as the greatest crime of modern history. My feelings go out to those men and women who are enslaved. Emancipation should be the outcome, together with the rights and privileges that accompany citizenship of this country. I will join with the angry working class of the North who are arming against an arrogant Southern aristocracy, and contribute to, and vote for, the Republican Party. From the private diary of a prominent New York lawyer, August 1859. Source D I believe the reason why the Republican party is growing in support in the North is because it rightly, in my long-held view, opposes slavery. However, I feel it is not a question of sympathy for the Africans or much interest in the slavery question itself. It is because our American free labouring men fear losing their work to the slaves of the Southern aristocracy. Slavery represents a threat to their livelihoods and we see it as a criminal activity. I think the recent events in Boston over the brutal enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Law on men, women and children has reinforced this view and increased the demand for abolition. It matters not to me, or those who voted for me, whether they happen to be African slaves, Asian or European. While some feel that all men are created equal, I do not think that every man has the same rights. Our Northern people prize their political privileges too highly to think of sharing them with three or four million emancipated slaves. From a letter by a Democratic party politician in the ‘New York Daily Tribune', a leading abolitionist newspaper, December 1859. Answer both parts of the question with reference to the sources.