Malcolm Rivera
The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. The Thirteenth Amendment was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, and by the House of Representatives on January 31, 1865. It was ratified by 27 states on December 6, 1865, and proclaimed on December 18, 1865. This amendment was the first of three Reconstruction Amendments adopted following the American Civil War. While the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery, it did not address the economic situation of most blacks who remained in the south, nor did it prevent labor as punishment for convicted criminals. Aside from this, other practices abolished by constitutional amendments include the prohibition of poll taxes and the lowering of the minimum voting age from 21 to 18.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of Amendment | Thirteenth Amendment (Amendment XIII) |
| Date of Ratification | 1865 |
| What it abolished | Slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime |
| What it empowered | Congress to enforce Section One "by appropriate legislation" |
| What it led to | Civil Rights Act of 1866 |
| What it did not change | The economic situation of most blacks who remained in the South |
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What You'll Learn
Abolition of slavery
The Thirteenth Amendment (Amendment XIII) to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. Before the Thirteenth Amendment, slavery was implicitly recognised in the original Constitution, with provisions such as the Three-Fifths Compromise and the Fugitive Slave Clause. The Three-Fifths Compromise, mentioned in Article I, Section 2, Clause 3, stated that three-fifths of each state's enslaved population ("other persons") was to be added to its free population for the purposes of apportioning seats in the United States House of Representatives, its number of electoral votes, and direct taxes among the states. The Fugitive Slave Clause, located in Article IV, Section 2, Clause 3, stated that slaves held under the laws of one state who escaped to another state did not become free, but remained slaves.
In the years leading up to the American Civil War, an abolitionist movement grew in strength in the North, calling for the immediate end of slavery nationwide. Proposals to eliminate slavery by constitutional amendment were introduced by Representative Arthur Livermore in 1818 and by John Quincy Adams in 1839, but failed to gain significant traction. On September 22, 1862, acting under presidential war powers, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which came into effect on January 1, 1863. The proclamation declared that all persons held as slaves within any state or designated part of a state in rebellion against the United States were henceforth to be free. However, the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery in the nation since it only applied to areas of the Confederacy currently in rebellion and not even to the loyal "border states" that remained in the Union.
Lincoln recognised that the Emancipation Proclamation would have to be followed by a constitutional amendment to guarantee the abolishment of slavery. The Thirteenth Amendment was passed at the end of the Civil War, before the Southern states had been restored to the Union. The amendment was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, and by the House of Representatives on January 31, 1865. It was ratified by the required 27 of the then 36 states on December 6, 1865, and proclaimed on December 18, 1865. The amendment states: "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."
The Thirteenth Amendment was a transformative moment in American history, immediately and powerfully abolishing chattel slavery in the southern United States. In addition to ending slavery, the amendment restricted several other forms of bound labour and servitude, such as indentured servitude and peonage. The amendment also empowered Congress to enforce its provisions through appropriate legislation, allowing Congress to pass laws to abolish all badges and incidents of slavery in the United States. While the Thirteenth Amendment has not been frequently invoked in recent years, it remains a solemn promise that slavery will never again exist in the United States.
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Involuntary servitude abolished
The Thirteenth Amendment (Amendment XIII) to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. The amendment was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, by the House of Representatives on January 31, 1865, and ratified on December 6, 1865, by 27 states, with its adoption before the end of 1865.
The Thirteenth Amendment's first section declares that "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist," immediately abolishing chattel slavery in the southern United States. While slavery was abolished, the amendment did not substantially alter the economic situation of most freed slaves, who remained in the south. They continued to work on the same plantations, receiving similar wages, and were subject to modified slave codes.
The Thirteenth Amendment also empowers Congress to enforce the abolition of slavery through appropriate legislation. This language, unique to constitutional amendments at the time, allowed Congress to pass laws against modern forms of slavery, such as sex trafficking, and strike down race-based discrimination as "badges and incidents of slavery."
Despite its historical significance, the Thirteenth Amendment is not frequently invoked in modern times. This is likely because slavery is no longer practised, and various laws prevent and punish coerced labour. The amendment's relevance today is debated, including whether it governs the fairness of contemporary labour practices or empowers Congress to pass broad civil rights laws.
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Discrimination banned
The Thirteenth Amendment (Amendment XIII) to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. The Amendment was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, and by the House of Representatives on January 31, 1865. It was then ratified by 27 states on December 6, 1865, and proclaimed on December 18, 1865.
While the Thirteenth Amendment's primary purpose was to abolish slavery, some scholars argue that it also banned racially discriminatory practices that accompanied the institution of slavery. This interpretation stems from the Amendment's language, which empowers Congress to enforce the abolition of slavery "by appropriate legislation." This broad language has been used to strike down race-based discrimination and empower Congress to pass civil rights laws against modern forms of slavery, such as sex trafficking.
The Thirteenth Amendment was a transformative moment in American history, ensuring that slavery would never again exist in the United States. However, it did not substantially alter the economic situation of most formerly enslaved people, who remained in the South without land, money, legal status, or protection.
Despite its historical significance, the Thirteenth Amendment is not frequently invoked in modern times, as slavery is no longer a part of American society. Additionally, some argue that the Amendment's purpose has been fulfilled by subsequent amendments and civil rights laws that further prohibit and punish any form of coerced labor and discrimination.
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Poll taxes abolished
The 24th Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified on January 23, 1964, abolished poll taxes. Poll taxes were a discriminatory method that required voters to pay a fee to enter polling places to cast their ballots. This disproportionately affected African Americans and poor Whites in the Southern states, effectively excluding them from voting.
The text of the 24th Amendment states:
> The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay poll tax or other tax. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
The ratification of the 24th Amendment marked the culmination of an endeavour that began in Congress in 1939 to eliminate the poll tax as a qualification for voting in federal elections. The poll tax, along with other methods of restricting the vote, was crafted in a way that avoided federal scrutiny.
In the late 19th century, following the American Civil War and the Reconstruction Era, states across the former Confederacy imposed a series of laws that restricted the civil liberties of their citizens. While the 15th Amendment granted the right to vote to all American men, African Americans in the South faced several types of laws that restricted their voting rights due to technicalities that were either arbitrary or openly discriminatory.
A more prominent wave of criticism towards the poll tax grew during the Roosevelt Administration of the 1930s and 1940s. This included a political cartoon by Theodor Geisel, better known by his pen name "Dr. Seuss", criticising poll taxes in American elections in 1942. President Harry S. Truman continued these criticisms through his President's Committee on Civil Rights, investigating the poll tax and other forms of voter restriction.
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Right to vote for women
The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which was passed on June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18, 1920, granted women the right to vote. The amendment was the culmination of a long and difficult campaign by the women's suffrage movement, which had its roots in the mid-19th century. Activists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton played a pivotal role in the movement, advocating for a constitutional amendment that would guarantee women the same right to vote as men.
Prior to the 19th Amendment, women had limited political rights in the United States. While women in several pre-revolutionary colonies had the right to vote, by 1807, every state constitution had denied women even restricted suffrage. New Jersey was the only exception, initially granting suffrage to property-owning residents, including women. However, in 1807, the state revoked women's voting rights, and they were not restored until New Jersey ratified the 19th Amendment in 1920.
The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 is considered the catalyst for the women's rights movement in the United States. The convention adopted the Declaration of Sentiments, which called for equality between men and women and included a demand for women's suffrage. Despite the growing momentum, the movement faced setbacks, with the U.S. Supreme Court striking down legal arguments in favour of women's voting rights.
The tide began to turn in 1917 when New York adopted women's suffrage, and in 1918, President Wilson voiced his support for a constitutional amendment. On May 21, 1919, the House of Representatives passed the amendment, and two weeks later, the Senate followed suit. The final hurdle was cleared when Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the amendment, thanks to the decisive vote of Harry T. Burn, a young legislator who heeded his mother's advice to "be a good boy."
The 19th Amendment marked a significant step towards gender equality in the United States, enfranchising 26 million American women by the 1920 U.S. presidential election. However, it is important to note that the amendment did not guarantee voting rights for all women. African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American women continued to face barriers to voting, and it would take further struggles and amendments to fully realise the promise of universal suffrage.
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Frequently asked questions
The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
The Thirteenth Amendment was a transformative moment in American history, immediately abolishing chattel slavery in the Southern United States. It also empowered Congress to enforce the abolition "by appropriate legislation".
The Thirteenth Amendment was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, and by the House of Representatives on January 31, 1865. It was then ratified by 27 states on December 6, 1865, and proclaimed on December 18, 1865.
