Representation And Slavery: The Articles Of Confederation

Under the Articles of Confederation, written in 1777, the United States of America was in dire need of a strong centralized power and a more structured government. 55 delegates rallied to this need and started the Philadelphia Convention, where the motive was to form a better government that would meet the needs of its people. With this motive in mind, the Constitution of the United States was drafted, but there was still a long road till it was signed into law in 1788. In order to make the Constitution legitimate, it would need to be ratified by all 13 states. Combining all the needs of each colony was an intricate compromise, but it was these compromises that made it acceptable by so many. The genius of the Constitution is most found in the compromise involving representation and slavery because the compromise …show more content…
In the Constitution, Congress was given the power to directly tax imports on slaves and the ability to ban slavery altogether in 20 years. This portion of the Constitution appealed to abolitionists which persuaded them to ratify. Because of this power, the abolitionists were able to gain support for their cause. Also, concluded in the ⅗ the compromise, slavery was more discouraged because it caused the state to pay higher taxes because slaves were counted as 3/5 ths a person in taxation. Clearly, the Constitution tried to remain impartial to slavery because ratification of the southern states were needed, but the Constitution gave the potential to oppress slavery which ultimately led to its downfall. Obviously, since the 19th century, when slavery was officially outlawed, in America, slavery has been looked down on and as a dark time in this nation 's history. For this reason, the compromise of representation and slavery can be applauded and as a result of the genius writing of the