3.7. Slavery in the Constitution http://www.ck12.org
Question:
- According to Freehling, why didn’t the authors of the Constitution abolish slavery?
The Law of American Slavery –Kermit Hall
Source: Excerpt fromTheLawofAmericanSlavery, a book written by historian Kermit Hall and published in 1987.
Slavery hung over the Philadelphia Convention, threatening to divide northern and southern delegates. Even though
slavery existed by law in some of the northern states in 1787, most people there favored its end. Southerners were
more unsure about whether to end slavery, both because they had significantly greater numbers of slaves to deal with
and because an end to [slavery] had important economic implications. The result was compromise. The Founding
Fathers were more determined to fashion a new nation than they were to bring an end to slavery.
Question:
- According to Hall, why didn’t the authors of the Constitution abolish slavery?
Section Question:
- Based on the information from the primary sources above, which of the historians’ explanations do you find
most convincing? Why?