Why did southerners support slavery if they didn't own slaves?

While it is true that not all southerners supported slavery, it also is true that not all non-slave owners in the south supported the end of it. In fact, there were many southerners who greatly feared what would happen to the South if slavery were abolished.

To best understand this thinking, put yourself in the shoes of a southerner around the time of the Civil War. Many southerners—including those who didn't own slaves—felt that Abraham Lincoln was trying to minimize the role the southern states played in the United States. If they didn't fight alongside their friends and neighbors who owned slaves, many believed that they would have no chance to be accurately represented in Washington, D.C.

Those who defended slavery—even if they didn't own slaves themselves—believed that the slaves in the southern states were better taken care of than the poor who were found in the northern states as well as throughout Europe. Some argued that by keeping blacks as slaves, slave owners were protecting them by providing for them homes in which to live and healthcare when they were sick.

Southerners also feared what would happen if so many slaves were freed in such a short period of time. They believed widespread unemployment and chaos would be imminent once slaves were freed. By continuing the status quo, the order and supposed harmony of society as it existed would remain. For many southerners, this was desirable—even if they didn't own slaves themselves.