Final answer:
The movement formed in the North that was opposed to slavery for moral reasons was the abolitionist movement, characterized by activists like William Lloyd Garrison employing moral suasion to combat slavery. They focused on immediate emancipation and rallied against the westward expansion of slavery, leading to increasing tensions between the North and South.
Step-by-step explanation:
People were opposed to slavery for moral reasons, and they formed a movement in the North called the abolitionist movement. Influential figures such as William Lloyd Garrison and groups like the New England Anti-Slavery Society and the American Anti-Slavery Society were central to this movement. With the strategy of moral suasion, abolitionists sought to appeal to the sense of Christian conscience and humanity of slaveholders to voluntarily release their slaves, advocating for immediate emancipation and fighting against the spread of slavery to new territories.
The abolitionist movement had a profound impact on the North's stance on slavery, establishing hundreds of antislavery societies and working alongside long-standing associations of black activists to combat racism and spread their message. By employing narratives from formerly enslaved individuals, they highlighted the horrors of slavery, including the destruction of families and sexual violence, to persuade the public against the institution of slavery.
Despite their efforts, the nation would ultimately be divided on this issue, with Northern and Southern perspectives diverging significantly and leading to increasing tensions that would contribute to the onset of the Civil War.