Slavery in the United States

Bibliographic Data

ID23402838
AuthorsPaul Finkelman (corresponding author)
Year2012
Pages105-134
Publication date2012-09-27
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeCHAPTER
VenueThe Legal Understanding Of Slavery From The Historical To The Contemporary (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherOxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199660469.003.0007
OpenAlexW2484015940
ISBN9780199660469
LanguageEN
Citations received14

This chapter studies slavery in the United States, specifically how the Supreme Court and the U.S. Constitution defined and understood it. It first shows how slavery was protected by law due to the efforts of the framers of the 1787 Constitutional Convention. It then explains how the Supreme Court came to define slavery through its legal system. This chapter also demonstrates the way the legal system balanced the dual status of slaves as ‘people’ and ‘property’.

Constitution · Convention · Political science · Property (philosophy) · Supreme court · Colonialism, slavery, and trade · International Labor and Employment Law · Law · Philosophy