The Civil War was about slavery, and while there were certainly many abolitionists who truly believed in the inherent equality of "all God's creatures", most people, North and South still believed that Black people were not equal to White. Even though the North fought to end slavery and bring the South to heel, they were not really fighting to end White Supremacy.

Many of the worst race riots in American History were in supposed "Free States". Racism and White Supremacy is an AMERICAN thing, not a Southern thing. We all need to realize that before we can truly address this national stain.