Wilmot's Expansion Of Slavery In The United States

Despite desire to be a unified independent nation, the U.S was destined for civil war since its birth. This was mainly due to the institution of slavery, which led to the political issues and debates of western expansion of slavery, the increase of sectionalism due to concerns over states’ rights, and increased pressure to reform slavery from the abolitionist movement. Beginning with the Louisiana Purchase, westward expansion raised questions on the fate of slavery in the United States. The question was not to abolish slavery’s existence altogether, but instead, whether or not to allow it to expand into new territories; while the South wanted to continue slavery’s expansion into these lands, the North wanted it to stop. The Missouri Compromise

When the U.S acquired new territory through the Mexican-American War, the Wilmot Proviso was drafted as an attempt to settle what would be done with this land. Favoring the North by far, the document stated that all Mexican secession territory would be free. (Doc. 3). Despite his bias as a Free Soiler, one would expect that in attempt to appeal to congress as a whole and have his proposal passed, David Wilmot would have included aspects to his document that favored both sections. But instead, Wilmot is honest in his wishes and his actions, aiming to make all of this new territory free. His Northern-favoring proposal was viewed as a great threat to the South and their slavery-centered lifestyles and economies;instilling fear that the North was willing and able to stop the spread of their lifestyle. This threat would cause conflict for the following four years until the Compromise of 1850, which held arguable status as a

The thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments would provide freedom, citizenship, and suffrage to African Americans, but their civil and social rights would continue to be threatened. Almost one hundred years later when the civil rights movement of the 1950’s/1960’s was underway, not much had changed for African Americans in these respects of American society since the age of slavery. Though free citizens, people of color were still lacking social rights and equality. On numerous occasions, one being on the issue of integration of schools, the South continued their trend of ignoring the wishes of the federal government and instead going with what best fit their interests; in this case, keeping their schools “separate but equal.” Even one hundred years later, it is though nothing had changed. Civil rights leaders were fighting for the rights of African Americans the same way that abolitionists had in the 1850’s. The Southern states were prioritizing their own interests and choosing to go against the federal government, the same way that they had in 1860 when