The Promises of Liberty : The History and Contemporary Relevance of the Thirteenth Amendment

In these original essays, America's leading historians and legal scholars reassess the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment and its relevance to issues of liberty, justice, and equality. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States, reasserting the radical, egalitarian dimensions of the Constitution. It also laid the foundations for future civil rights and social justice legislation. Yet subsequent reinterpretation and misappropriation have curbed more substantive change. With constitutional jurisprudence undergoing a revival, __The Promises of Liberty__ provides a full portrait of the Thirteenth Amendment and its potential for ensuring liberty. The collection begins with Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David Brion Davis, who discusses the failure of the Thirteenth Amendment to achieve its framers' objectives. The next piece, by Alexander Tsesis, provides a detailed account of the Amendment's revolutionary character. James M. McPherson, another Pulitzer recipient, recounts the influence of abolitionists on the ratification process, and Paul Finkelman focuses on who freed the slaves and President Lincoln's commitment to ending slavery. Michael Vorenberg revisits the nineteenth century's understanding of freedom and citizenship and the Amendment's surprisingly small role in the Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction periods. William M. Wiecek shows how the Supreme Court's narrow interpretation once rendered the guarantee of freedom nearly illusory, and the collection's third Pulitzer Prize winner, David M. Oshinsky, explains how peonage undermined the prohibition against compulsory service. Subsequent essays relate the Thirteenth Amendment to congressional authority, hate crimes legislation, the labor movement, and immigrant rights. These chapters analyze unique features of the amendment along with its elusive meanings and affirm its power to reform criminal and immigration law, affirmative action policies, and the protection of civil liberties. Introduction : the Thirteenth Amendment's revolutionary aims / Alexander Tsesis In pursuit of constitutional abolitionism / James M. McPherson The Civil War, emancipation, and the Thirteenth Amendment : understanding who freed the slaves / Paul Finkelman Citizenship and the Thirteenth Amendment : understanding the deafening silence / Michael Vorenberg Emancipation and civic status : the American experience, 1865-1915 / William M. Wiecek Convict labor in the post-Civil War South : involuntary servitude after the Thirteenth Amendment / David M. Oshinsky The Thirteenth Amendment and a new deal for civil rights / Risa L. Goluboff The workers' freedom of association under the Thirteenth Amendment / James Gray Pope The badges and incidents of slavery and the power of Congress to enforce the Thirteenth Amendment / George A. Rutherglen The promise of congressional enforcement / Rebecca E. Zietlow Protecting full and equal rights : the floor and more / Aviam Soifer Forced labor revisited : the Thirteenth Amendment and abortion / Andrew Koppelman The slave power undead : criminal justice successes and failures of the Thirteenth Amendment / Andrew E. Taslitz Toward a Thirteenth Amendment exclusionary rule as a remedy for racial profiling / William M. Carter, Jr. Immigrant workers and the Thirteenth Amendment / Maria L. Ontiveros A Thirteenth Amendment agenda for the twenty-first century : of promises, power and precaution / Darrell A. H. Miller. Contents Foreword: The Rocky Road to Freedom—Crucial Barriers to Abolition in the Antebellum Years 1. Introduction: The Thirteenth Amendment’s Revolutionary Aims Part 1: Historical Settings 2. In Pursuit of Constitutional Abolitionism 3. The Civil War, Emancipation, and the Thirteenth Amendment: Understanding Who Freed the Slaves 4. Citizenship and the Thirteenth Amendment: Understanding the Deafening Silence 5. Emancipation and Civic Status: The American Experience, 1865– 1915 6. Convict Labor in the Post–Civil War South: Involuntary Servitude After the Thirteenth Amendment 7. The Thirteenth Amendment and a New Deal for Civil Rights 8. The Workers’ Freedom of Association Under the Thirteenth Amendment Part 2: Current Legal Landscapes 9. The Badges and Incidents of Slavery and the Power of Congress to Enforce the Thirteenth Amendment 10. The Promise of Congressional Enforcement 11. Protecting Full and Equal Rights: The Floor and More 12. Forced Labor Revisited: The Thirteenth Amendment and Abortion 13. The Slave Power Undead: Criminal Justice Successes and Failures of the Thirteenth Amendment 14. Toward a Thirteenth Amendment Exclusionary Rule as a Remedy for Racial Profiling 15. Immigrant Workers and the Thirteenth Amendment 16. A Thirteenth Amendment Agenda for the Twenty-first Century: Of Promises, Power, and Precaution 17. Epilogue: The Enduring Legacy of the Thirteenth Amendment Acknowledgments List of Contributors Index The collection begins with Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David Brion Davis. who discusses the failure of the Thirteenth Amendment to achieve its framers objectives. The next piece, by Alexander Tsesis. provides a detailed account of the Amendment's revolutionary character. James M. MePherson, another Pulitzer recipient, recounts the influence of abolitionists on the ratification process, and Paul Finkelman focuses on who freed the slaves and President Lincoln's commitment to ending slavery. Michael Vorenberg revisits the nineteenth century's understanding of freedom and citizenship and the Amendment's small role in the Reconstruction and post-Reconstruction periods. William M. Wiecek shows how the Supreme Court's narrow interpretation once rendered the guarantee of freedom nearly illusory, and the collection's third Pulitzer Prize winner, David M. Oshinsky, explains how peonage undermined the prohibition against compulsory service In these original essays, America's leading historians and legal scholars reassess the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment and its contemporary relevance to issues of liberty, justice, and equality. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States, reasserting the radical, egalitarian dimensions of the Constitution. It laid the foundation for future civil rights and social justice legislation, yet subsequent reinterpretation and misappropriation has curbed more substantive change. With constitutional jurisprudence undergoing a revival, The Promises of Liberty provides a full portrait of the Thirteenth Amendment and its potential for ensuring liberty In These Original Essays. America's leading historians and legal scholars reassess the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment and its relevance to issues of liberly, justice, and equality. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States, reasserting the radical, egalitarian dimensions of the Constitution. It also laid the foundations for future civil rights and social instice legislation. Yet subsequent reinterpretation and misappropriation have curbed more substantive change. With contitutional jurisprudence undergoing a revival. The Promises of Liberty provides a full portrail of the Thirteenth Amendment and its potential for ensuring liberty Subsequent essays relate the Thirleenth Amendment to congressional authority, hate crimes legislation, the labor movement, and immigrant rights. These chapters analyze unique features of the Amendment along with its elusive meanings and affirm its power to reform criminal and immigration law, affirmative action policies, and the protection of civil liberties. --Résumé de l'éditeur American History, American Government, Thirteenth Amendment american,history;,government;,thirteenth,amendment;,slavery;,law,and,legislation;,U.S.,Constitution american history,government,thirteenth amendment,slavery,law and legislation,U.S. Constitution