The Republican Party was born as a civil rights movement.
Our party began as a protest against a very specific outrage perpetrated by the Democrats, a law they passed in 1854 that allowed slavery to expand into the western territories. The Democratic Party chose to promote slavery, and the police state and economic stagnation that went with it.
Amid the intense reaction, opponents of slavery united with a single purpose: âEnough concessions to the âSlavocratsâ â thatâs what they called Democrats in those days, Slavocrats â âEnough concessions to the âSlavocrats.â We draw the line right here. NO SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES!â Over the next few months, these groups coalesced into our Republican Party.