Dates

African American History

TimeLine ~ Fugitive Slave Act Amendment ~ Document Analysis

Guide Questions

Use the following questions to analyze the Amendment proposed by Senator Davis in class. Write their answers on the board or on a transparency sheet projected on the wall.

Who wrote the Amendment? - Sen. John Davis of Mass.

When was it proposed as an amendment to the 1850 Fugitive Slave Act?

Date - Aug. 23 1850

Was the proposed amendment passed? - No

Who did this amendment attempt to protect? - Mariners or any free colored persons arriving on board any vessel in any port of the United States who had not committed any crime.

What was it protecting these people from? - Illegal imprisonment by officials of slave-owning states

Describe how it would have protected these people. - It would guarantee them an investigation into the reasons behind their detention.

Explain the meaning of the writ of habeas corpus. - Please check dictionary for meaning or derive it from context in the amendment

Describe what the judge in such a proceeding was expected to do.

-Investigate the reason behind their detention.

-Determine whether or not this detention was lawful.

-Order their release if it was determined that they had been illegally detained.

-Request that the costs incurred by the arrest and court proceedings be paid for by the government of the United States.

What does this amendment tell you about African-Americans in the United States during this period?

-That they could not travel freely to certain states because of the threat of being imprisoned and sold back into slavery.

-That certain states unconditionally refused to grant citizenship to African-Americans.

-That certain states did not extend the writ of habeas corpus to African Americans.

-That certain states did not recognize their status as freed men.

-That they could be imprisoned for no other reason than that they were African-American.

Search Site | Site Outline

SDHS