In 1836, one of the first women to publicly speak in front of a mixed gender audience about the Abolition of Slavery was Sarah Grimke. Sarah Grimke began her public speaking career as an Abolitionist and a Women's Rights advocate. Sarah and her sister, Angelina, witnessed the mistreatment of slaves as children. Growing up, they had a close relationship with their waiting maid. Their bond came through secret night-time reading lessons that Sarah gave to the waiting maid. Once her father, John F. Grimke, found out about these late night tutoring sessions, the waiting maid was given a beating as a warning; Sarah was also harshly reprimanded. Sarah took incidents she had experienced as a child and integrated them into her speeches. Under the guidance of the Quaker community, she made public talks about the abolitionist cause. Her speeches got so popular that men and women defied the social standards of that time, and listened to a woman's public speech. However, she was eventually silenced by male abolitionists who considered her public speaking a liability. Nevertheless, Sarah and Angelina Grimke were the first American women to express women's political and social rights, which resulted in the beginning of the Women's Movement. The Grimke Sister's progress soon captivated and brought about many other women to the focus of anti-slavery and feminist's causes. .
Additionally, former slaves and free blacks were right alongside the abolitionist cause as devoted advocates. An important woman to mention is a free black woman named, Maria Stewart. She was said to be the first African-American woman to deliver a public speech. She also published many of her speeches in Garrison's Liberator. Maria thought that free blacks weren't any better off than enslaved blacks. She promoted the education of blacks, and was convinced that education was key to achieving freedom and better social standings in America.
