Another cause of the American Civil War was the fight for whether the government would value federal rights over states’ rights. Economic and social differences caused the Northern States to view certain subjects differently than the Southern States. The South was also afraid that they would stand outnumbered in Congressional representation and not properly exhibited. However, the Constitution allows each slave to be tallied as three-fifths of a person for population count, which in turn gave the South the advantage when it came to representation. In 1857, the Dred Scott Decision declared the “freed” Negroes did not have citizenship. Northerners were incredibly shaken by this and the South attempted to force them to return freed or runaway slaves to their owners. Not too long after, Abraham Lincoln, an anti-slavery Republican, had been elected into presidency. He remained convinced that slavery would never be allowed to be adopted in new territories and will ultimately be abolished. His victory ensured the South that they had drawn the short end of the stick. This sparked a fire in the South and they fell to their only other alternative. South Carolina published its “Declaration of the Causes of Secession.” They knew Abraham Lincoln was anti-slavery and believed he would give preferentiality to northern interests. His election resulted in the secession of eleven southern
Another cause of the American Civil War was the fight for whether the government would value federal rights over states’ rights. Economic and social differences caused the Northern States to view certain subjects differently than the Southern States. The South was also afraid that they would stand outnumbered in Congressional representation and not properly exhibited. However, the Constitution allows each slave to be tallied as three-fifths of a person for population count, which in turn gave the South the advantage when it came to representation. In 1857, the Dred Scott Decision declared the “freed” Negroes did not have citizenship. Northerners were incredibly shaken by this and the South attempted to force them to return freed or runaway slaves to their owners. Not too long after, Abraham Lincoln, an anti-slavery Republican, had been elected into presidency. He remained convinced that slavery would never be allowed to be adopted in new territories and will ultimately be abolished. His victory ensured the South that they had drawn the short end of the stick. This sparked a fire in the South and they fell to their only other alternative. South Carolina published its “Declaration of the Causes of Secession.” They knew Abraham Lincoln was anti-slavery and believed he would give preferentiality to northern interests. His election resulted in the secession of eleven southern