I recently saw the movie "Amazing Grace," about the end of the
slave trade in England. How does libertarianism respond to the
American Civil War and the Civil rights movement? In both of
them, government action was used to enhance freedom. Government
action made slavery possible, and kept it possible -- and the
government only backtracked when the citizenry objected. For
example, prior to the Civil War, slavery was legal and enforced
by governments of both North and South. Slaves who escaped to
the North were returned -- by law -- to their Southern "owners."
It was against the law in the North to help slaves escape. To
fight slavery it was necessary for freedom lovers to fight the
law. Members of the Underground Railroad, who tried to get the
escaped slaves to Canada where they couldn't be extradited, were
routinely hauled into court. Courageous individuals serving on
the juries refused to convict. (Juries have the
constitutionally-granted power to "nullify" laws that they
believe to be unjust; to learn more,