Thats a great philosophical discussion. Tell that to a slave in 1860 who had no hope of being free any time in his lifetime.
The Confederacy was wrong, and its good they lost.
I think we need to look into the true full history of US slavery.
Now, many things differed depending on state, etc. But, did you know, e.g., slaves BOUGHT their way out of slavery? Or their spouses?
How do you think so many “freemen” (Freeman) came to be? It wasn’t just escaping, especially in colonial days.
So no, I would not say “no hope”.
Except, of course, it changed the relationship of the states to the Federal government to the worst.