“I am exceedingly distressed at the proceedings of the Convention—being ... almost sure, they will ... lay the foundation of a Civil War.”
— Elbridge Gerry (Massachusetts Delegate), 1787
Slavery was embedded into America’s fabric by the time of the framing and ratification of the Constitution. At the Constitutional Convention, the delegates refused to write the word “slavery” or enshrine a “right to property in men” in the Constitution’s text, but they did compromise on the issue of slavery, writing important protections for slaveholders into our nations’s charter. Debates over slavery continued (and increased) in the decades to come, culminating in Abraham Lincoln’s election as America’s first anti-slavery president, Southern secession, and the Civil War. Following this bloody war, the Reconstruction Republicans worked to rebuild our nation on a stronger constitutional foundation, passing our nation’s first civil rights laws and ratifying the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. These amendments ended slavery, wrote the Declaration of Independence’s promise of freedom and equality into the Constitution, and promised to end racial discrimination in voting. Many scholars refer to this key period as America’s “Second Founding.”
Purpose
In this activity, you will compare and contrast the founding story of America’s fight for liberty with the founding story of existence of slavery. You will first examine an image and speech of Patrick Henry, embodying young America’s push for independence. Then compare that image and speech with a letter written by the same author on the issue of enslavement. Reflect on the relationship between America’s fight for independence and the desire of some of those same Founders to preserve the institution of slavery. Finally, read a passage from Harriet Tubman and reflect on her fight to end slavery.
Process
In small groups, examine the artwork capturing Patrick Henry's famous speech, entitled “Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death!” Then, read an excerpt of Henry’s famous speech of the same title. Finally, compare the image and Henry’s speech to a letter written by Henry during the same time period.
View the image and quotes below, or review the Visual Info Brief: Patrick Henry and Slavery slides.
Discuss as a large group the contradiction between young America’s fight for freedom with the existence of chattel slavery during the same period.
“Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death!”
This lithograph captures the moment when Patrick Henry delivered his famous speech on the rights of the colonists before the Virginia Assemblywho convened at Richmond, March 23, 1775. Henry’s famous speech became the battle cry of the American Revolution:
“Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace – but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”
Patrick Henry, Letter to Robert Pleasants, January 18, 1773
This excerpt is from a letter authored by Patrick Henry during the same time period. He wrote it to Robert Pleasants two years earlier. Henry was a slaveholder.
“Is it not amazing that at a time when the rights of humanity are defined and understood with precision, in a country, above all others, fond of liberty . . . that in such an age and such a country we find men professing a religion the most humane, mild, meek, gentle and generous, adopting a principle as repugnant to humanity as it is inconsistent with the Bible and destructive to liberty?
I shall honor the Quakers for their noble efforts to abolish Slavery. It is equally calculated to promote moral and political good.
Would any one believe that I am master of slaves by my own purchase? I am drawn along by the general inconvenience of living without them. I will not—I cannot justify it, however culpable my conduct. I will so far pay my devoir to Virtue, as to own the excellence and rectitude of her precepts, and to lament my want of conformity to them. I believe a time will come when an opportunity will be afforded to abolish this lamentable evil.”
Launch
From the very beginning of the American republic, Americans battled over the institution of slavery—with each side laying claim to the Constitution’s text and history to defend its position.
A range of voices—both pro-slavery and anti-slavery—turned to the Constitution’s language and constructed arguments to favor their side of the great constitutional battles over slavery in the 1800s. We’ll cover many of those constitutional debates in detail in this module.
Activity Synthesis
We are using Patrick Henry here as a stand-in for many leaders in early America. Through this activity, we will try to help students understand the complexity of this context in early America, a conflict between America’s founding principles and the existence of chattel slavery. Share the image, speech, and letter, found on the Visual Info Brief: Patrick Henry and Slavery slides, and discuss as a large group.
As a final reflection, share the power of Harriet Tubman.
The quote below is from a biography of Harriet Tubman. Echoing Patrick Henry, Tubman writes about her work on the Underground Railroad and the fight for liberty:
“Harriet was now left alone, . . . She turned her face toward the north, and fixing her eyes on the guiding star, and committing her way unto the Lord, she started again upon her long, lonely journey. She believed that there were one or two things she had a right to, liberty or death.”
After making her own escape, Tubman returned to the South 19 times to bring over 300 fugitives to safety, including her own aged parents.
Activity Extension (optional)
Now that students have a better understanding of the complexity of our founding story, ask the following question: Have you seen similar complexity in other periods in American history? With other key figures?
What is the role of America’s founding creed (perhaps, most notably, as written into the Declaration of Independence) in pushes for reform? How has our nation’s founding creed served as both a tool to expose our contradictions and a north star guiding us to do better?
Purpose
In this activity, you will view a video on the compromises over slavery at the Constitutional Convention and the story of slavery and emancipation in America.
Process
Watch the following video about slavery.
Then, complete the Video Reflection: Slavery in America worksheet.
Identify any areas that are unclear to you or where you would like further explanation. Be prepared to discuss your answers in a group and to ask your teacher any remaining questions.
Launch
Give students time to watch the video and answer the questions in the worksheet.
Activity Synthesis
Have students share their responses in small groups and then discuss as a class.
Activity Extension (optional)
Now that students have a better understanding of slavery and the Constitution, ask the following question:
Purpose
The anti-slavery movement was part of the American story from the very beginning. Prior to the Civil War, both pro-slavery and anti-slavery advocates debated the Constitution’s meaning and its relationship to slavery. Several different visions emerged. An important set of voices pushed to end slavery in America. These abolitionist and anti-slavery voices comprised an interracial movement, bringing together African Americans and white Americans (and both men and women) in the fight for emancipation.
In this activity, you will examine some key figures in the fight to end slavery in America. Here is an Info Brief: Anti-Slavery Movements Thoughout American History to support your understanding of the movement.
Process
Read the profile of a person who was a key figure in the push to end slavery and/or advance the rights of African Americans. Then, analyze an excerpt of a primary source authored by that person.
Create a short presentation or flier about your assigned person,their actions, and their ideas. Include visuals and at least one primary source quote.
Share your presentation with your classmates.
Launch
Break students up into small groups or have them complete this activity alone. Provide some background information on the abolitionist movement and have them review the Info Brief: Anti-Slavery Movements Thoughout American History.
Next, assign each group a key figure in the fight to end slavery and/or advance the rights of African Americans. Students will analyze the excerpt of a primary source authored by that person and share findings with the larger group.
Activity Synthesis
Have students summarize the background, actions, and ideas of their figure with the larger group and build a flyer or presentation on their freedom fighter. What aspect of African American freedom and equality did they prioritize?
Activity Extension (optional)
Now that students have a better understanding of abolitionism, ask the following questions:
Purpose
In this activity, you will explore the key events that led to the Civil War and the eventual ratification of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. You will also use primary documents to explore the cause of the Civil War and its broader meaning.
Process
Read Info Brief: Slavery in America to build understanding about the events that to the Civil War.
Then, we will review primary sources from key Southern states explaining their decisions to leave the Union after the election of Abraham Lincoln as the nation’s first antislavery President. Explore the procolmations of secession and the relationship between the Civil War and slavery. Secession is the act of withdrawing formally from membership in a nation. These secession ordinances were formal acts passed by the seceding states when they decided to leave the Union. Like the Declaration of Independence, these ordinances were meant as written statements explaining their reasons to the rest of the world.
As part of this activity, you will also read key primary sources from the North, namely, key texts by Abraham Lincoln, explaining why secession was unconstitutional and offering Lincoln’s own account of the meaning of the Civil War.
Through these sources, we will explore two key questions:
Your teacher will break you into groups and assign you a set of primary sources. Answer the questions on the worksheet and reflect on these key questions.
Launch
The goal of this activity is to allow students to explore primary sources around the causes and meaning of the Civil War. These sources cover Southern secession, the Union response, and the outcome of the Civil War. Primary sources are a powerful tool to give students the opportunity to read the Southern states in their own words, Lincoln’s powerful responses, and examine the meaning of the Civil War.
Activity Synthesis
The goal of the activity is to help students: (1) see that Southern secession was driven by slavery (in the Confederates’ own words); (2) understand Lincoln’s arguments against secession, and (3) reflect on the broader meaning of the Civil War. The sources to review are:
Group 1: Primary Sources: Reasons for Secession and Lincoln’s Initial Response
Group 2: Primary Sources: Lincoln and Preserving the Union
Have students share their responses in small groups and then discuss as a class. As a class, consider the following question:
Activity Extension (optional)
Now that students have a better understanding of slavery and the Constitution, have the students examine the text of the 13th Amendment again. Then, ask them to read the
Interactive Constitution Common Interpretation essay on the 13th Amendment and an excerpt from George Julian’s Political Recollections that describes the moment when Congress approved the 13th Amendment and sent it to the states for ratification.
You can ask students again: How did the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment connect to the reasons for secession and shape the meaning of the Civil War? Connect the cause of the war with the outcomes of the war. Following the ratification of the 13th Amendment, what more was needed to ensure “a new birth of freedom” for African Americans in post-Civil War America?
Purpose
The period after the Civil War is known as Reconstruction. During this critical moment, the Reconstruction Republicans—the party of Lincoln and the party of Union—worked to place the post-Civil War nation on a strong constitutional foundation. In this activity, you will explore the challenges facing the nation after the Civil War and reflect on how the 14th and 15th Amendments responded to them. While the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, the 14th Amendment wrote the Declaration of Independence’s promise of freedom and equality into the Constitution and the 15th Amendment promised to end racial discrimination in voting. Many scholars refer to these Reconstruction Amendments as America’s “Second Founding.”
Process
Read the texts of the 14th Amendment and 15th Amendment as a class. Analyze the text of each amendment and pull out the big ideas.
Then, read America’s Unfinished Second Founding written by Jeffrey Rosen and Tom Donnelly for The Atlantic. Discuss as a class.
From there, your teacher will divide you into groups or you can work individually. Each group will review one of the sources listed below. For this activity you will be collecting examples from the primary sources that connect to the protections that the framers wrote into the 14th and 15th Amendments. If relevant, take notes on the author of the source and the author’s importance to Reconstruction. Who were they and why should we listen to them?
Finally, come back together as a class and share your findings from your assigned source. Explore the essential questions:
Launch
Before the activity begins, have students share what they believe are the key outcomes of the Civil War. Then, ask them what they know about Reconstruction.
Activity Synthesis
In this activity students will explore the Constitution’s text and primary source materials that highlight the factors that shaped the framing and ratification of the 14th and 15th Amendments and outline the vision of some of the voices pushing these transformative changes to the Constitution. Have students summarize the primary sources and then compare them to the 14th and 15th Amendments.
Students will focus on the following questions:
Activity Extension (optional)
Purpose
Over time, many reformers have used the powerful words of the Declaration of Independence to demand that we live up to our nation’s founding principles. In this activity, you will read excerpts written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and explore how Dr. King called on America’s founding creed and the Declaration of Independence’s promises of freedom and equality to advance the goals of the civil rights movement..
Process
Your teacher will break your class up into small groups and assign each group to read Letter from Birmingham Jail or the I Have a Dream Speech. We encourage you to read both if you have the time.
Compare your assigned source to the Declaration of Independence to cite convergence and divergence between the two documents. Answer the following questions:
Share as a large group and write a complete list of convergent and divergent statements of the pairings.
Launch
Explain that by the late 1800s, a mix of white violence and Jim Crow laws undermined the promise of the Reconstruction Amendments. However, the civil rights movement fought to realize America’s founding principles and fulfill the constitutional promise of the Reconstruction Amendments. Break students into two groups. Have one group read Letter from a Birmingham Jail and the other read the I Have a Dream Speech.
Activity Synthesis
Share as a large group and write a complete list of convergent and divergent statements of the pairings.
Ask the students to reflect on the following questions:
Ask the students to give other examples from this course of reformers that draw on America’s founding principles to call on us to become “a more perfect Union.”
Purpose
Congratulations for completing the activities in this module! Now it’s time to apply what you have learned about the basic ideas and concepts covered.
Process
Complete the questions in the following quiz to test your knowledge.
Launch
This activity will help students determine their overall understanding of module concepts. It is recommended that questions are completed electronically so immediate feedback is provided, but a downloadable copy of the questions (with answer key) is also available.
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