Omar Bennett
The United States Constitution, written in 1787, has been criticized for its treatment of Black Americans. While the document does not explicitly mention race or color, it does include provisions that protected the institution of slavery. For example, the Three-Fifths Compromise counted each slave as three-fifths of a person when determining state representation in the House of Representatives, giving Southern states with large slave populations more political power. The Constitution also prohibited Congress from abolishing the importation of slaves for 20 years and included a fugitive slave clause requiring the return of runaway slaves to their owners. While some argue that the Constitution's concessions to slavery were necessary to gain support for a strong central government, others contend that it left out a majority of Americans and laid the foundation for tragic events. Amendments passed after the Civil War, such as the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, abolished slavery, granted citizenship, and gave Black men the right to vote, respectively.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Were Black people left out of the Constitution? | Yes, Black people were left out of the Constitution. |
| Why? | The framers of the Constitution believed that concessions on slavery were necessary to gain the support of southern delegates for a strong central government. |
| Were there any attempts to include Black people in the Constitution? | Yes, there were "eloquent objections" to slavery during the Constitutional Convention. However, the framers consciously avoided using the word "slave" in the document. |
| What were the implications of leaving Black people out of the Constitution? | The original Constitution permitted slavery and treated Black people as less than human. It also left women out and did not combat religious intolerance. |
| Were there any amendments to the Constitution to include Black people? | The 13th Amendment abolished slavery, and the 14th Amendment guaranteed Black Americans birthright citizenship and protection against removal. |
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What You'll Learn
The original Constitution permitted slavery
The original US Constitution, written in 1787 and ratified in 1789, did not expressly permit or ban slavery. However, it included several clauses that protected and perpetuated the institution of slavery.
Firstly, the Three-Fifths Clause, which counted three-fifths of a state's slave population in apportioning representation, gave the South extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College. This clause reflected the view that slaves were considered less than human and only a fraction of a human being.
Secondly, the Fugitive Slave Clause required the return of runaway slaves to their owners. This clause was part of a compromise that banned restrictions on the Atlantic slave trade for 20 years in exchange for removing a clause restricting the national government's power over trade.
Many of the framers of the Constitution owned slaves and prioritised political unity over abolition. They deliberately avoided using explicit references to slavery, instead using euphemisms like "Person held to Service or Labour". They believed that concessions on slavery were necessary to gain the support of southern delegates for a strong central government.
The original Constitution lacked the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery in 1865. The 13th Amendment states that "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."
In conclusion, while the original Constitution did not explicitly permit slavery, it included clauses that protected and perpetuated the institution of slavery, reflecting the conflicted stance of its framers. It took the 13th Amendment and the Civil War to finally abolish slavery in the United States.
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The framers avoided using the word 'slave'
The original United States Constitution did not contain the word "slave" or "slavery" within its text. However, it dealt directly with American slavery in at least five of its provisions and indirectly protected the institution in several other clauses. The framers of the Constitution consciously avoided using the word "slave" and instead used euphemisms like "persons held to Service or Labour". They believed that slavery was morally wrong and would eventually die out, and they did not want that permanent moral stain on the document.
The framers' conflicted stance towards slavery led them to deliberately avoid using direct language about the institution in the Constitution. While many personally opposed slavery on moral grounds, they prioritized political unity over abolition. The economic and political realities of slavery also made substantive action impossible during the Constitutional Convention.
The framers' use of euphemisms reflected their attempt to sidestep moral confrontation while preserving the institution. They made a prudential compromise with slavery because they sought to achieve their highest goal of a stronger Union of republican self-government. Since some slaveholding delegations threatened to walk out of the Constitution if slavery was threatened, there was a possibility that there would have been separate free and slave confederacies instead of the United States.
The specific clauses of the Constitution related to slavery were the Three-Fifths Clause, the ban on Congress ending the slave trade for twenty years, the fugitive slave clause, and the slave insurrections clause. These measures ensured that slavery remained a national issue rather than a purely state-level concern, embedding it deeper into the fabric of American governance.
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The three-fifths clause gave extra representation to Southern states
The Three-Fifths Compromise, or the Three-Fifths Clause, was a compromise reached between delegates at the 1787 Constitutional Convention regarding the counting of slaves towards representation in the House of Representatives and the Electoral College. The clause stated that three-fifths of the slave population would be counted along with the free population for the purpose of apportioning representation. This gave Southern states, which had significant slave populations, extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College.
The inclusion of the Three-Fifths Clause in the Constitution was a result of the controversy over the Atlantic slave trade. Southern delegates, many of whom were slaveholders, threatened to refuse to join the Union if the Constitution restricted the slave trade. As a compromise, the framers of the Constitution agreed to a 20-year ban on any restrictions on the Atlantic slave trade in exchange for concessions from the Southern states.
The Three-Fifths Clause was a significant advantage for the Southern states, as it gave them greater representation and political power. This extra representation also had important economic implications, as it influenced the distribution of federal funds and the enforcement of federal laws. Additionally, the clause strengthened the institution of slavery and left it more deeply embedded in American life and politics.
While the Three-Fifths Clause gave extra representation to the Southern states, it is important to note that the framers of the Constitution consciously avoided using the word "slave" in the document. Instead, they used terms like "all other persons" to refer to slaves, recognizing that the word "slave" would sully the document. However, the inclusion of the Three-Fifths Clause and other slavery clauses in the Constitution ultimately provided important protections for slavery and delayed its abolition.
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The Constitution didn't secure the right of women to vote
The Constitution of the United States, ratified in 1788, was a groundbreaking document that established the rights and freedoms of American citizens. However, it is important to recognize that the Constitution, as originally written, had certain limitations and did not extend equal rights to all. In particular, the Constitution did not explicitly secure the right of women to vote, which remained a significant issue to be addressed in the centuries that followed.
The omission of women's suffrage in the Constitution was a direct result of the societal norms and political realities of the time. The founding fathers, who authored and ratified the document, operated within a patriarchal framework that largely excluded women from the public sphere and decision-making processes. As a result, the language and structure of the Constitution reflected the prevailing belief that political participation was primarily a male prerogative.
During the late 18th century, when the Constitution was drafted, women were generally expected to adhere to traditional gender roles that emphasized domestic responsibilities and limited their involvement in public life. This cultural context influenced the framing of the Constitution, resulting in a document that largely overlooked the political rights of women. The lack of representation and input from women in the Constitutional Convention further contributed to this exclusion.
It is important to note that the fight for women's suffrage gained momentum in the following centuries, with women's rights activists advocating for their inclusion in the democratic process. The women's suffrage movement, which gained significant traction in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, played a crucial role in challenging the status quo and demanding that women be granted the right to vote. Their efforts culminated in the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920, which finally guaranteed women the right to vote nationwide.
The omission of women's suffrage in the original Constitution highlights the evolving nature of democratic ideals and the ongoing struggle for equal rights. The fight for women's voting rights serves as a reminder that the Constitution, while a foundational document, is not static but rather a living framework that can be amended and interpreted to reflect the changing societal values and aspirations of a diverse nation.
In conclusion, while the Constitution established a framework for democratic governance and protected certain fundamental rights, it fell short of securing the right of women to participate fully in the political process. The exclusion of women's suffrage was a direct consequence of the societal norms and biases of the time, which marginalized women and restricted their public roles. However, through the tireless efforts of women's rights activists and the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, this injustice was eventually rectified, marking a significant step forward in the ongoing journey toward a more inclusive and equitable democracy.
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Amendments have since abolished slavery and guaranteed birthright citizenship
The original, unamended Constitution of the United States did not abolish slavery. The Thirteenth Amendment, passed in 1865, abolished slavery and prohibited involuntary servitude, unless as punishment for a crime. The Thirteenth Amendment was passed after the Civil War, which was largely fought over the issue of slavery.
The original Constitution included several provisions that protected slavery and gave advantages to slave-owning states. Firstly, the Three-Fifths Compromise, which counted three-fifths of each state's slave population when apportioning representation, gave the South extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College. Secondly, the Fugitive Slave Clause required the return of runaway slaves to their owners. Thirdly, the Constitution prohibited Congress from abolishing the importation of slaves for twenty years.
The Fourteenth Amendment, passed in 1868, guaranteed birthright citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States. This was an important step in protecting the rights of Black Americans, who had previously been denied constitutional protections. The Fourteenth Amendment also provided for equal protection under the law, which has been used to challenge racial discrimination and segregation.
The amendments abolishing slavery and guaranteeing birthright citizenship were the result of a long and bitter struggle for freedom and equality by Black Americans. These amendments represent a significant improvement over the original Constitution, which, while not explicitly racist, had the effect of entrenching slavery and denying basic rights to Black Americans.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes and no. While the Constitution did not mention Black people or slavery explicitly, it did include clauses that protected slavery and considered slaves as three-fifths of a person for representation purposes.
The Constitution's authors avoided using the words "slavery" and "slave" and instead used phrases like "person held to service or labor." This was likely because they recognised that explicitly mentioning slavery would sully the document.
Yes, the Constitution included several provisions that protected and strengthened slavery. These included:
- Prohibiting Congress from abolishing the importation of slaves for 20 years.
- Requiring the return of runaway slaves to their owners.
- Counting three-fifths of a state's slave population when apportioning representation, which gave the South extra representation in the House of Representatives and extra votes in the Electoral College.
The Constitution's protection of slavery and its three-fifths clause laid the foundation for future racial inequality and segregation. The Supreme Court decision Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, for example, legalised "separate but equal" facilities for races, leading to the "Jim Crow" segregation system that reduced African American citizens to second-class status.
