Why did the constitution fail to outlaw slavery?

Answer 1

As Charles Cotesworth Pinckney put it, South Carolina and Georgia couldn't do without slaves. Slavery was a big part of the economy, for one thing, and, also, people weren't ready to give up slavery. People have to come around to ideas like that - because believing that blacks were on par with humans was a big, new Idea. Society hadn't matured enough for that. And outlawing slavery would cause such an uproar that the Constitution would never get ratified.

Answer 2

There was much discussion about abolishing slavery in the initial Constitutional Convention. However, the Southern States did not want to lose the economic power of slavery, so it was not included in the in the final draft. It took several more decades for it to end.

Answer 3

The "Slave States" were accepted into the union as "Slave States" which defined those slaves from that point forward, in law, as property. The civil war was a constitutional deprivation of property, in that the Union divested the Confederacy of property without just compensation (as required by the constitution). It must also be noted that the income of the "Slave States" was incredibly higher than the non-slave states, and the US Government needed the money; so there was a financial incentive and a lot of power behind the decision (outlined below).

Thomas Jefferson included a denouncement of slavery in the Declaration of Independence, but it was removed by the Continental Congress. In 1776 the Virginia Assembly appointed Thomas Jefferson, George Wythe and Edmund Pendleton to emancipate slaves; the best they could do is outlaw the further import of slaves (1778) because of pressures by the wealthy. In 1779 Jefferson proposed deporting the slaves back to Africa, the proposal was ignored. In 1784 Jefferson introduces a bill to abolish slavery in the US and its territories, it was defeated by Congress. Jefferson introduces a bill to forbid new states joining the union as "slave states" it is the first law passed by the newly formed US Congress; the Freedom Ordinance of 1787. In 1787 the U.S. Constitution is approved by all states, it includes a moratorium against passing any "slave law" for 20 years.

Please note: This answer does not support 'slavery' it simply explains the lawful aspect of the actions taken at the time.

Answer 4

Because there was no great Abolitionist lobby at the time it was written.

'Men are born equal' meant white men. The reference to 'property' clearly included slave property.