--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I came here from Kansas,” he announced to…" description: "\"“I came here from Kansas,” he announced to his captive. “This is a slave state. I want to free all the Negroes in this state. I have possession now of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc0/tony-horwitz-23752_slave-state_i-came-here-from-kansas-he-announced-to_114016.jpg" --- # I came here from Kansas,” he announced to his captive… ![“I came here from Kansas,” he announced to his captive. “This is a slave state. I want to free all the Negroes in this state. I have possession now of the United States armory, and if the citizens interfere with me, I must only burn the town and have blood.” quote by Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc0/tony-horwitz-23752_slave-state_i-came-here-from-kansas-he-announced-to_114016.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc0/tony-horwitz-23752_slave-state_i-came-here-from-kansas-he-announced-to_114016.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc0/tony-horwitz-23752_slave-state_i-came-here-from-kansas-he-announced-to_114016.jpg) > ““I came here from Kansas,” he announced to his captive. “This is a slave state. I want to free all the Negroes in this state. I have possession now of the United States armory, and if the citizens interfere with me, I must only burn the town and have blood.”” [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A self‑declared liberator threatens violence to force emancipation, revealing the paradox of using oppression to claim freedom. **In simple terms:** He threatens violence to free slaves. Key Takeaway Ends justify means, but with moral conflict. Themes violence freedom paradox morality Mood tense conflicted Type historical controversial When to use this quote - Historical debates on revolutionary tactics - Modern protest strategies - Literary analysis of anti‑hero characters Key Concepts ethical dilemma power dynamics Practical Applications - Examine the moral cost of violent liberation Questions to Reflect On - Can violence ever be a legitimate path to justice? - What alternatives exist for achieving emancipation? A Different Perspective Violence often creates new oppression; true freedom may require non‑violent means. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Announced Captive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/announced-captive-1346441/) [Came Kansas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/came-kansas-1346440/) [Captive Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/captive-slave-1346439/) [Free Negroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-negroes-1346442/) [Slave State](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave-state-1282162/) ## Related quotes > [You say you will not fight to free negroes. Some of them seem willing to fight for you; but, no matter. 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Cleon Skousen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-cleon-skousen/) ## More by Tony Horwitz > [During a mock battle attended by President Warren Harding in 1921, Marine Corps General Smedley D. Butler exhumed the arm \[of Stonewall Jackson; he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horwitz/during-a-mock-battle-attended-by-president-warren-harding-in-1921/) [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) > [“The way I see it," King said, "your great-grandfather fought and died because he believed my great-grandfather should stay a slave. I'm supposed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horwitz/the-way-i-see-it-king-said-your-great-grandfather-fought-and-died/) [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) > [Even aimless journeys have a purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horwitz/even-aimless-journeys-have-a-purpose/) [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) > [“I asked him if he thought “there” was better than “here.” “Not better,” he said. “I mean, my great-great-grandpap got his leg shot off.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horwitz/i-asked-him-if-he-thought-there-was-better-than-here-not-better-he/) [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) > [“When the singing ended, I chatted with others in my pew, including a tall, aristocratic-looking man with pomaded gray hair. 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You can never reach out and touch him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horwitz/the-best-you-can-do-is-catch-an-echo-of-the-man-you-can-never-reach/) [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) > [I am an agnostic on most matters of faith, but on the subjects of maps I have always been a true believer. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horwitz/i-am-an-agnostic-on-most-matters-of-faith-but-on-the-subjects-of-maps/) [Tony Horwitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horwitz/) > [“Michael King was a young preacher with horn-rimmed glasses and a close-cropped beard and mustache. 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Seward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-seward/) > [The Free State men, myself among them, took it for granted that Missouri was a slave state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buffalo-bill/the-free-state-men-myself-among-them-took-it-for-granted-that/) [Buffalo Bill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buffalo-bill/) > [Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also in prison, the only house in a slave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/under-a-government-which-imprisons-any-unjustly-the-true-place-for-a-2/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Browse all 7 Slave State quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave-state-1282162/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I came here from Kansas,” he announced to his captive. “This is a slave state. I want to free all the Negroes in this state. 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