Learn about the 13th Amendment, the only law that brought true freedom to the entire United States and ended slavery nationwide.
The 13th Amendment is the only law passed that freed the whole country. It specifically stated: Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude…shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction….” It clearly states, “…within the (entire) United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction….” Not parts, sections, or regions. All other laws, legislation, and acts only freed a portion or section of the country.
If we are going to celebrate freedom, it only makes logical sense to celebrate when all were freed instead of when some were freed. No one in their right mind celebrates a 100-yard dash race at the 90-yard line. They wait until they reach the finish line or else they will lose. It this case the American people are losing in historical accuracy, integrity, and honesty. To continue, knowingly, to misrepresent the facts of history is to practice deception, fraud, and mislead the American people, especially black Americans. For the sake of the people whom we say we love, teach the truth. The 13th Amendment ended slavery, the 14th Amendment gave black people citizenship and civil rights, and the 15th Amendment gave black people the right to vote.
Nothing in this article suggests that the other laws and legislations were not important and vital to the quest for freedom. They all were important and played a part. They all were forerunners to the 13th Amendment. But it was the 13th Amendment that closed the deal. It must not be ignored. It must not be trivialized. It must not be forgotten. Knowing about all these laws and legislations is important, but the actual celebration must start with the 13th Amendment!
The first rule of an activist, a reformist, or a freedom fighter is that he or she must never lie to the people for personal gain or status. He or she must not think they can run from the truth, hide from the truth, or fight the truth. The seeds of truth have been planted all over this country, they are germinating in the minds and hearts of the people, soon to blossom. The best thing to do is embrace the truth and incorporate it in whatever you do, in terms of history and freedom education, or freedom celebration. Now is the time to add, not take away.
The Northwest Ordinance (July 13, 1787) only covered five states and part of another (Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota east of the Mississippi River.
The First Confiscation Act (August 6, 1861) only covered runaway slaves.
The D.C. Emancipation (April 16, 1862) only covered the slaves in Washington D.C.
The Second Confiscation Act (July 17, 1862) only covered freed slaves of Civilian and Military Officers in the South where Union forces had the power.
The Emancipation Proclamation (Issue September 22, 1862, effective January 1, 1863) covered the slaves in the eleven states that were in rebellion. The 13th Amendment was the only law that freed the slaves, and it covered the whole USA and all of its territories.
The six main laws, ordinances, legislations, and acts that contributed to the end of slavery are:
- The Northwest Ordinance – July 13, 1787
The Northwest Ordinance (1877) made sure that all the territories in the Northwest Territories, once they were approved to be states, would not allow slavery to exist within their borders. These states included Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and parts of Minnesota (east of the Mississippi, because the west of the Mississippi belonged to the French at the time).
Article VI
“…neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted….”
- The First Confiscation Act – August 1861
It freed runaway slaves who had been forced to fight or work for the Confederate armies. It authorized the Union’s seizure of rebel property, including slaves, from owners who knowingly aided and abetted insurrection against the Union. The Act was passed by Congress and signed by President Lincoln. It freed runaway slaves but not anybody else.
- D. C. Emancipation – April 16, 1862
It freed only the slaves in the city of Washington D.C. It was signed by President Lincoln three months before the Second Confiscation Act and nine months before the Emancipation Proclamation. The D.C. Emancipation freed 3,100 Black people. It compensated slave owners. It is also called the Compensation Emancipation Act because it is the only example of the Federal Government compensating former slave owners for their slaves. It reads as follows:
Section 1.
“…neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except for crime, whereof the party shall be duly convicted, shall hereafter exist in said District.”
- The Second Confiscation Act – July 1862
This act was in response to the Confederate law that confiscated the southern properties of Union supporters. The Act was passed by Congress and signed by President Lincoln. It freed slaves of civilians and military Confederate officials, whether the slaves were used for military purposes or not. It called for the confiscation of property and punishment for all rebels as well as those who committed treason. It was mainly enforceable in areas of the South occupied by the Union Army. It reads as follows:
Section 9
“And be it further enacted, That all slaves of persons who shall hereafter be engaged in rebellion against the government of the United States, or who shall in any way give aid or comfort thereto, escaping from such persons and taking refuge within the lines of the army; and all slaves captured from such persons or deserted by them and coming under the control of the government of the United States; and all slaves of such person found on [or] being within any place occupied by rebel forces and afterwards occupied by the forces of the United States, shall be deemed captives of war, and shall be forever free of their servitude, and not again held as slaves.”
This act was very strong and called for the freeing of slaves, confiscation of property, and punishment for all rebels and those who committed treason. It did not cover the Border States and allowed for the deportation of freed slaves and even colonization. It led to the Emancipation Proclamation two months later. And the Emancipation Proclamation led to the 13th Amendment, which President Abraham Lincoln also signed. The 13th Amendment abolished slavery for all law-abiding Americans, regardless of race, religion, or sex.
- Emancipation Proclamation – (issued September 22, 1862, effective January 1, 1863)
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862, to become effective 100 days later on January 1, 1863. Per Article II, section 2 of the United States Constitution, President Lincoln was “… Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several states, when called into the actual Service of the United States….” And by virtue of his authority as Commander in Chief, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation “… as a fit and necessary war measure for suppressing said rebellion…” of those in ACTUAL ARMED rebellion against the authority and government of the United States. The Emancipation Proclamation freed those slaves only in states/territories (or designated parts of a State) in rebellion against the United States would “thenceforward, and forever free.”
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