slavery_government

Student Questions -

How did the federal government respond to slavery during the 1800s?

Why didn't we end slavery after the 20 year time period after the constitution was written in (1808)? We did not end slavery because the south wouldn't support it. If the government didn't have the south's support, the nation would split.

How does Congress deal with the issue of Slavery spreading to the south west of America? Congress issued a law the prohibited slavery north of the southern border of Missouri and it prohibited slavery in the Louisiana Territory.

 When England stopped slavery, why didn't America follow their lead? England stopped slavery before the Revolutionary War.

 What role did the President play with slavery? He was an idiot time after time and lead popular sovereignty. rawr xd

Student information, resources, and reflection starts here

[|Slavery and the Government Site] This site includes personal narratives and original documents. Tons of information about slavery and the government.

__**Time line:**__

1800- The United States government passed several laws that punished citizens who voluntarily assisted slave traders. 1807-U.S. congress and the British parliament vote to stop the African slave trade 1808- The United States government outlawed the slave trade. 1819-Congress and the President agree to send troops to Africa to stop the African slave trade to the U.S. 1820-Congress votes to define the African slave trade as piracy 1820- Missouri Compromise Missouri is admitted to the Union as a slave state, Maine as a free state. Slavery is forbidden in any subsequent territories north of latitude 36°30´. 1850- Compromise of 1850 In exchange for California’s entering the Union as a free state, northern congressmen accept a harsher Fugitive Slave Act. 1865-The 13th Amendment passes, abolishing slavery in the U.S. 1870- The Amendment is ratified, slaves are freed and suffrage was granted to the African American slaves

[| Anti-slavery time line] Includes major events concerning slavery and the government from 1472-2008

__**Slavery in the Constitution:**__

[|This is the text of the document that states slave trade is prohibited.]

U.S. Constitution Article 1, Section 9, Clause 1: "The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight" • This says that in 1808, Congress could end the slave trade, but it couldn't end slavery. On January 1, 1808, Congress did end the slave trade, but slavery was still practiced.

U.S. Constitution Article 4, Section 2, Clause 3: "No person held to service or labor in one state, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due." • This says that even if a slave were to escape to a free state, they are required by law to return to their work.

When the Constitution was in 1787, a forgotten edition was included in Article I, which dealt with the duties of the Legislative Branch: Section 9. The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person. In short, the US government wasn't able to ban the importation of slaves until 2o years after the Constitution was adopted. In 1808, many who opposed the trans-Atlantic slave trade started to begin making plans for laws that would out law it. A senator from Vermont was the first to propose a bill to out law the importation of slaves in 1805. Thomas Jefferson, the president at the time, recommended this action when he addressed congress a year later in 1806. The law was finally passed by Congress on March 2, 1807 and Jefferson signed the bill on March 3. In the years to come, the law was enforced by the US navy, who were able to seize suspected slave ships. The 1807 law ending the importation of slaves didn't stop the buying and selling of slaves within the US. And the controversy surrounding slavery continued for decades to come.

__**Fugitive Slave Act:**__ Read the full Fugitive Slave Act [|here] (This link is explained by the other Fugitive Slave Act links)

[|The Fugitive Slave Act and its Impact] This webpage shows a passage of the Fugitive Slave Act. It also gives other primary sources, such as letters from Abolitionists.

[|Fugitive Slave Act Primary Source] This is an article from the Hartford Daily Courant on October 2, 1850. This explained what the fugitive slave act is and what the fines are if you don't follow the act. The government made it possible for escaped slaves in the North to still be arrested and brought back to the South.

A picture of the Fugitive Slave Act.

__**Missouri Compromise:**__ [|Missouri Compromise] This web address give somedetails on the Missouri Compromise to further explain it. It also has additional information in it on some cour cases dealing with the freedom of slaves. It mentions President Abraham Lincoln's election on an anti-slavery platform. It also depicts some examples of the reaction to the abolition of slavery in the South.

This is a picture of the Missouri Compromise. To see its original website [|click here]

__**Presidents And Slavery:**__ [|What did early presidents think of slavery?] This site gives direct quotes from seven presidents and other well-known people of the time. Most of the people believed that slavery was wrong. However, many of the first presidents actually owned slaves! (see link below)

Want to find which Presidents owned slaves? [|Find out here!] This link shows that 10 out of the first 15 Presidents owned slaves. 8 of these presidents owned slaves while they were president. Since the presidents owned slaves, it helped justify that slavery was right in the eyes of many people. (The table below is a simplified version of the website.)


 * **President** || **Did he own slaves?** ||
 * George Washington || Yes ||
 * John Adams || No ||
 * Thomas Jefferson || Yes ||
 * James Madison || Yes ||
 * James Monroe || Yes ||
 * John Quincy Adams || No ||
 * Andrew Jackson || Yes ||
 * Martin Van Buren || Yes, but not while president ||
 * William Henry Harrison || Yes, but not while president ||
 * John Tyler || Yes ||
 * James K Polk || Yes ||
 * Zachary Taylor || Yes ||
 * Millard Fillmore || No ||
 * Franklin Pierce || No ||
 * James Buchanan || No ||
 * Abraham Lincoln || No ||
 * Andrew Johnson || Yes, but not while president ||
 * Ulysses S Grant || Yes ||