Ladies Antislavery Fundraising

Description:Throughout their life time, one of the biggest concerns of Birmingham's female antislavery activists was to emphasise the need for greater awareness of how seemingly harmless everyday products were produced at the expense of slavery and oppression.

This image of a fundaising 'cash book' identifies how the women of Birmingham kept accounts of the money they raised on behalf of the slave. For instance, the 'silk bags' listed here were items which would have been made by the women themselves (silk was used as a substitue for cotton, a product of slavery) to be sold to raise money and awareness of cause. They would fill such bags with antislavery literature, like their own illustrated albums, or copies of antislavery poetry such as 'Pity the Negro' (also present on the image above).

These bags would be sold locally and nationally, wherever they could raise support for antislavery. Looking for donations, many members of the society embarked on ‘door to door’ campaigns to sell these items and deliver leaflets, covering wide areas of the town on foot. The women's antislavery society also held social gatherings and talks, meanwhile sending letters to politicians, manufacturers and even royalty. The Birmingham women formed part of a large interconnected antislavery network that extended up and down the country.