Slavery, a Turning Point

     Slavery allowed the American economy to expand tremendously. Many slaves were brought to America to work on tobacco, sugar, and cotton farms. The Northern and Southern colonies had very different viewpoints towards slavery. The North was growing industrially, while the South was mainly small towns with large plantations. When the constitution was written Southerners argued that slavery contributed greatly to the nation's wealth.

The Civil War    

     In 1861, a large war began that would undoubtedly change America forever. The United States liked to believe that all men were created with equal liberty, how then could the country still have Slave holding States? Many Colonist asked themselves the same question, which caused a lot of commotion in the coming years. The Civil war started because of uncompromising differences between slave states and free states. When President Abraham Lincoln came into office in 1860 many Southern states seceded from the United States government and began their own nation, the Confederate States. After many long years of brutal wars between a single nation, the confederate President Jefferson Davis was captured and soon after the Confederate States surrendered, in 1865.   

The brochure below explains the Civil War in more detail.

Turning Point

     Slavery was a horrible reality that happened. Many were beaten and died, so the end of Slavery caused for a huge success of America. African Americans were allowed to finally have a proper life. The abolition of slavery paved the way for the future. Many believe that America was founded on the basis of freedom, if that was true, then why did slavery not become abolished until 1685? the ending of slavery caused chaos throughout the nation. 

     In 1863, President Lincoln enacted the emancipation proclamation which stated that all slaves shall be free. Two years later, Congress created the freemen's bureau, which protected the rights of the newly free African Americans. 

     The fourteenth and fifteenth amendments played a major part of the liberation for African Americans. The fourteenth amendment stated that individuals that were born in the States, were to be considered American citizens, including slaves. In 1870, the fifteenth amendment was ratified. The amendment concluded, that African Americans had the right to vote. 

     Throughout the years, African Americans slowly gained freedom. Even though every slave experienced hardships, their perseverance helped millions of the American citizens now, experience equality. 

Sources:

"A Brief Overview of the American Civil War." American Battlefield Trust. March 07, 2018. Accessed October 16, 2018. https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/brief-overview-american-civil-war. 

Infoplease. Accessed November 16, 2018. https://www.infoplease.com/spot/timeline-key-moments-black-history.