Emancipation Proclamation

The Emancipation Proclamation was an important order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War. It changed the status of more than 3.5 million enslaved African Americans in the Confederate states from enslaved to free. Any enslaved person who could escape to Union-controlled areas or areas taken by federal troops became permanently free. The Proclamation also allowed former slaves to join the United States armed forces.

Before the final Proclamation, Lincoln issued a preliminary version on September 22, 1862, warning that freedom would come if the rebellion continued. The final document listed the states still rebelling and declared that all enslaved people there were free. It could not be enforced in areas still under Confederate control, but as the Union army advanced, it provided the legal basis for freeing enslaved people across the South.

The Emancipation Proclamation changed the purpose of the Civil War, shifting it from saving the Union to ending slavery. It upset many white Southerners but inspired abolitionists and gave hope to African Americans. Many enslaved people escaped to Union lines and joined the Union Army. Although the Proclamation did not end slavery everywhere immediately, it was a key step toward the end of slavery in the United States. Later, the 13th Amendment was passed to make slavery unconstitutional forever.

Authority

Further information: Slave states and free states and Slavery and the United States Constitution

The United States Constitution from 1787 included rules about people who were not free, even though it did not use the word "slavery". For example, it counted enslaved people as three-fifths of a person when deciding how many representatives each state would have. It also said that if someone who was enslaved escaped to a free state, they could be captured and returned.

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln used his power as Commander in Chief to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. He believed this allowed him to free people who were enslaved in the states that had rebelled against the United States. However, this did not apply to the border states that remained part of the Union, such as Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and Delaware.

Coverage

The Emancipation Proclamation was meant to free enslaved people in ten states that were fighting against the United States on January 1, 1863. These states were South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, and North Carolina. It did not apply to nearly 500,000 enslaved people in four states that were not fighting, called border states: Maryland, Delaware, Missouri, and Kentucky. The state of Tennessee was also not included because it was under Union control.

Some areas were specially left out of the Proclamation. These included parts of Virginia that later became West Virginia, parts around New Orleans in Louisiana, and other places that Lincoln thought were still loyal to the United States. Because of these exceptions, about 300,000 enslaved people were not freed right away by the Proclamation. As Union troops moved through the South, many enslaved people escaped to freedom, which helped weaken the Confederate economy and strengthen the Union army.

Background

Military action prior to emancipation

The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 made it a rule that people who had escaped slavery must be returned to their owners. During the Civil War, in May 1861, a Union general named Benjamin Butler said that three people who escaped to Union lines were contraband of war, meaning they were taken as goods by the enemy. He refused to send them back, telling someone who wanted them returned, "I am not obligated to a country that Virginia now claims to be."

Governmental action toward emancipation

In December 1861, President Lincoln spoke to Congress about his ideas. He liked the idea of freeing enslaved people but also wanted to keep the country together. In January 1862, a leader in the House of Representatives called for freeing enslaved people to hurt the enemy’s economy. Later that year, Congress passed a law that stopped the return of people who had escaped slavery. Slavery was ended in the District of Columbia in April 1862.

In June 1862, Congress passed a law ending slavery in all U.S. areas not part of any state. President Lincoln signed this into law. This went against an earlier court decision that said Congress could not control slavery in these areas. Also, in July 1862, a new law said that enslaved people in areas controlled by rebel forces and then taken by Union forces would be permanently free. However, Lincoln still thought only he, as the leader during war, could free enslaved people in rebel areas if it helped win the war. By summer 1862, Lincoln had written a proclamation to free enslaved people in rebelling states, to go into effect on January 1, 1863.

Public opinion of emancipation

Some people, called abolitionists, had for a long time asked Lincoln to free all enslaved people. In 1862, a well-known writer said it was time to attack the enemy more strongly and free the enslaved people quickly. Lincoln replied that his main goal was to keep the country together, not to end slavery. He said he would free enslaved people if it helped save the country, but he did not have to if it did not. Some people thought Lincoln was only saying this to make others agree to his plans. Others thought he truly wanted to end slavery but needed to explain it in a way that would get support. During the months before January 1863, Lincoln still considered saving the country without freeing any enslaved people, but he also prepared to free those in rebelling states.

Drafting and issuance of the Proclamation

Abraham Lincoln first talked about the Emancipation Proclamation with his advisors in July 1862. He wrote a draft and shared it with important leaders, who had different ideas about when it should be shared.

After a big battle in September 1862, Lincoln had the chance he needed. He issued a warning that he would free enslaved people in parts of the South still fighting against the United States. He made this official on January 1, 1863. This proclamation changed the legal status of enslaved African Americans in those areas from enslaved to free. As Union troops moved forward, many enslaved people escaped to join them, finally gaining their freedom.

The Emancipation Proclamation also allowed freed people to join the United States military. Many African Americans served and helped the United States win the war. Some areas were not included in the proclamation at first, but later changes and state actions led to freedom for enslaved people in those places as well.

Implementation

The Emancipation Proclamation was a special order issued by President Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War. It announced that over three million enslaved African Americans in the Southern states fighting against the United States would be considered free.

Many enslaved people celebrated when the Proclamation took effect. In places like Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, people gathered to hear that they were now free. The Proclamation encouraged many enslaved people to escape to areas controlled by the United States Army, where they were protected. This weakened the South's ability to work and helped the North's efforts in the war. The Proclamation changed the war's purpose to include ending slavery, which gained support from many people who opposed slavery and from other countries.

Gettysburg Address

President Abraham Lincoln spoke about the Emancipation Proclamation in his Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863. He used the words "new birth of freedom" to talk about ending slavery as one of the goals of the Civil War. The Proclamation helped Lincoln gain support from people who wanted to end slavery, making sure they would back him when he ran for re-election in 1864.

Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (1863)

In December 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation about how the rebel states could make peace with the Union. The main rules were that these states had to agree to the Emancipation Proclamation, which meant accepting that enslaved people were now free. They also had to accept laws that took away property from people who supported the rebellion and a law that banned slavery in areas where the United States government had control.

Postbellum

Near the end of the war, some people worried that the Emancipation Proclamation might only apply during the fighting. To make sure freedom lasted, President Lincoln worked hard to pass a new law to end slavery everywhere in the United States. With his re-election, Lincoln asked Congress to send the new law to the states to approve.

By December 1865, enough states had agreed, and the law became official. This meant that even in places like Kentucky and Delaware, where slavery had not ended yet, people were finally free.

Critiques

Further information: Abraham Lincoln and slavery

The Emancipation Proclamation has been discussed by many historians. Some have said it did not change much because it only applied to places that were not under Union control. Others believe it was an important step because it showed Lincoln’s strong will as a leader.

Many people have different opinions about what Lincoln’s true feelings were about ending slavery. Some think he did not go far enough, while others respect how much he grew as a leader during the Civil War. Historians continue to study and talk about the impact of the Emancipation Proclamation.

Legacy in the civil rights era

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. often talked about the Emancipation Proclamation during the civil rights movement. In a speech in 1962, he called it a very important part of history, like the Declaration of Independence. He said that even though the United States said it believed in these ideas, it did not always act on them. He dreamed that one day, the promise of freedom for all would truly come true.

In his famous "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963, King reminded everyone that 100 years earlier, the Emancipation Proclamation had offered hope to enslaved people. But he pointed out that even after 100 years, many African Americans were still not truly free, facing unfair treatment and separation.

The "Second Emancipation Proclamation"

Main article: Second Emancipation Proclamation

In the early 1960s, Dr. King and others asked President John F. Kennedy to use his power to end unfair laws without waiting for Congress. They called this idea the "Second Emancipation Proclamation." Although Kennedy did not create this second proclamation, the idea showed how important it was to fight for equal rights.

President John F. Kennedy

On June 11, 1963, President Kennedy spoke about civil rights on television. He talked about how, 100 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, many African Americans were still not fully free. He said it was a moral issue and announced that he would introduce a major law to help create equality. He worked hard to pass this law until he died later that year.

President Lyndon B. Johnson

During the civil rights movement, Lyndon B. Johnson also talked about the Emancipation Proclamation. He said that even though it promised freedom, many promises had not yet come true. As president, he spoke about this when he introduced a law to protect voting rights in 1965. He believed that it was time for true justice and equality for everyone.

In popular culture

The Emancipation Proclamation appeared in a 1963 episode of The Andy Griffith Show called "Andy Discovers America." In this episode, Andy asks his friend Barney to help explain the Emancipation Proclamation to his son Opie, who is having trouble with history at school. Barney tries to show off his knowledge but ends up frustrated and only says it is a proclamation for certain people who wanted freedom.

The Emancipation Proclamation was also featured in the 2012 movie Lincoln, directed by Steven Spielberg. It is celebrated worldwide, including on stamps from places like the Republic of Togo. The United States issued a special stamp for it on August 16, 1963, to mark the opening of the Century of Negro Progress Exhibition in Chicago, Illinois. The stamp was designed by Georg Olden, with an initial printing of 120 million stamps.