Background Information on the Thirteenth Amendment: The 13th amendment to the United States’ constitution was introduced in order to free the slaves from slavery and make united states a free country by abolishing and prohibiting slavery. This amendment finalized the abolition of slave trade in the United States. The 13th amendment has its origin in the proposition made by Abraham Lincoln to his cabinet in relation to the freeing of all slaves in the rebellious states. It was proposed by the 38th congress of the United States and passed by the senate on 8th April 1864 before being adopted on the 6th of December in 1865 following the announcement of the secretary of state who declared it to have been adopted. President Lincoln made an emancipation proclamation which was aimed at outlawing slavery in the ten confederation states which resulted in the abolition of slavery in the confederate states. However slave trade continued on the Border States until the thirteenth amendment was formulated. This amendment ended slavery in all parts of the United States including the Border States. Section 1 of this amendment provides that neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist within the United States except in conditions where the individual was being punished because of crimes committed. The ratification of this amendment was completed on 6th December 1865 following the approval by most of the states (Goluboff 1609). The ratification of the 13th amendment had a significant impact on commerce since slaves were the main source of labor in most industries, factories and agricultural plantations. After this ratification, slaves were released from plantations and factories which forced more white men to work in plantations and fa... ... middle of paper ... ...y or other heavy equipments. There was a significant decline in exports in these states which was followed by the collapse of their currency and this made it difficult for these states to obtain credit (Engerman 208).Significant reduction in agricultural production across the state resulted in scarcity of agricultural commodities which in turn increased the prices of agricultural products as well as export surpluses. References Goluboff, R. (2001). The 13th amendment and the lost origins of civil rights. Duke Law Journal, 50 (228): 1609 Engerman, S.L. (1982). Economic adjustments to emancipation in the United States and British West Indies. The Journal of Interdisciplinary History, 13(2): 191 – 220 McGlynn, F., and Drescher, S. (1992). The meaning of freedom economics, politics and culture after slavery. Pittsburgh, Pa: University of Pittsburgh Press.
Franklin, J., Moss, A. Jr. From Slavery to Freedom. Seventh edition, McGraw Hill, Inc.: 1994.
Though the proclamation did not bring about an immediate effect, the idea that, "all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free”, aided in the strategery of the war, ultimately foreshadowing the passage of the 13th amendment. After the minute, nearly ineffective results of the Emancipation Proclamation, Lincoln searched for a new way to promote abolishing slavery, in hopes of ending the war in favor of the northern states. As the war was nearing end, Lincoln made it a priority to ratify the 13th amendment before the end of the civil war was official. Because of the divided congress, in which one party controls the house and the other the senate, Passing any amendment proved more difficult than ever before. Because of these difficulties, Lincoln fell to passing the amendment by corruption. One way in which corruption was practiced by Lincoln was through the use of
For Edmund S. Morgan American slavery and American freedom go together hand in hand. Morgan argues that many historians seem to ignore writing about the early development of American freedom simply because it was shaped by the rise of slavery. It seems ironic that while one group of people is trying to break the mold and become liberated, that same group is making others confined and shattering their respectability. The aspects of liberty, race, and slavery are closely intertwined in the essay, 'Slavery and Freedom: The American Paradox.'
... addition to preserving the Union. By the end of the war, it had influenced citizens to accept the abolition for all slaves in both the North and South. The 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery in the United States, passed on December 6, 1865.
Works Cited The "Civil Rights" Cornell University Law School, Inc. 2010. Web. The Web. The Web. 1 Apr. 2011.
The reforming time period from 1775 to 1830 was full of changes. However, the “peculiar institution” and its changes was one of the most noteworthy. These years brought an increase in enslaved African Americans, but surprisingly, also freed ones. In this essay, both the unfortunate and fortunate groups of these people will be our focal point.
Foner, Eric. "Chapter 9." Give Me Liberty!: An American History. Brief Third ed. Vol. One. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. N. pag. Print.
I believe that the 13th amendment was the most important amendment made to the US Constitution. The 13th amendment stated that slavery or involuntary servitude is to be considered illegal in the United States, which meant ending slavery. Originally, the 13th amendment was written to guarantee that slavery was legit in slave state instead of abolishing slavery, but due to the Civil War the amendment was unable to be passed to the stated for approval. However, when a slavery opposing man was elected as President, he made ending slavery a top priority.
In 1869 the 13th amendment was passed to make life for African American slaves better and to put an end to racial discrimination. In hopes of passing this amendment, equality and freedom was promised to all African Americans. The 13th amendment was passed to abolish slavery, yet slavery, lynching, segregation,and racial groups like the KKK were still occurring and spreading all throughout the United States.
A changing attitude in the North toward slavery changed the outlook of life for both free and enslaved blacks. As is shown in the maps of slavery in the U.S. in 1790 and 1830, while the South experienced a massive increase in slavery due to the demand for American cotton, and the west expanded slavery because of the newly available land for farming cotton from the Louisiana Purchase, the North’s slavery greatly dropped off, almost to none. Many slave owners freed their slaves upon death, as it was uneconomical for them to own them in the first place when they did not need them for labor with a more diversified northern economy emerging. Pressure morally to end slavery also led to ...
After the Civil War, the USA offered civil rights and laws privileges to African-Americans. The USA government passed an amendment ending slavery in 1865; the Thirteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Although slavery was outlawed, it did not provide citizenship and equal rights. Therefore, the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendment offered
Lincoln had a preliminary proclamation back in September 22, 1862. The reason President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation was because, "slaves in Confederate states which were not back in the union by then would be free, but slaves in the border states were not affected. The president knew the proclamation was a temporary military measure and only congress could remove slave permanently, but had the satisfaction of seeing the 13th Amendment pass a few months before his death." In other words Lincoln wanted to give slave states their rights of freedom, but the slaves along the border wouldn 't get that right of freedom because of where they were located and who they were for. He hoped the 13th amendment would back up his plan of the emancipation proclamation. President Lincolns philosophy left such a great remark on the people of the world. It was said by many different journalists of the civil war that Lincoln was, " a man of profound feeling, just and firm principles, and incorruptible
Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 during the civil war, as main goal to win the war. Some historians argued that it was based on feelings towards slaves because not only it freed slaves in the South; it was also a huge step for the real abolition of slavery in the United States. While other historians argued that it was a military tactic because it strengthened the Union army, because the emancipated slaves were joining the Union thus providing a larger manpower than the Confederacy . The Emancipation Proclamation emancipated slaves only in the Confederacy and did not apply to the Border-states and the Union states.
Schultz, David, and John R. Vile. The Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America. 710-712. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale Virtual Reference Library, n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2010. .
Knowles, H. J. (2007). The Constitution and Slavery: A Special Relationship. Slavery & Abolition, 28(3), 309-328. doi:10.1080/01440390701685514