In antebellum United States , chattel slavery was deeply embedded. It was an integral part of the socio-economic systems of the various states and thus protected by the constitution. The 'Railroad Rebels' didn't care. They knew that slavery was wrong. They were the ones who suffered from it, the ones who escaped from it; they were those who harboured fugitives, and who helped them move from servitude to liberty; people of all colours and classes who flouted the law on a daily basis, because their principles and beliefs demanded it of them. They were the ones formed what became known as the Underground Railroad, a loose, organic, grass-roots system helping fugitive slaves. It is because of them, that institutional slavery is now dead. And thank f**k for that. Long live the Railroad Rebels. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices