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It was a compromise between Southern states, where slavery was pivotal to the economy, and states where the abolition of slavery had been accomplished or was contemplated. There is a sense in which the Clause is no longer constitutionally relevant since it expired in 1808.
The importation of slaves from overseas to the United States was prohibited in 1808, but criminal trafficking of enslaved people on a smaller scale likely continued for many years.
21 paź 2024 · The discussion of the slave trade reveals a variety of opinions about slavery and how to deal with it in establishing the new government.
Congressional leaders like Henry Clay and newer legislators like Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois brokered a compromise. Clay offered a plan with four components that came to be called the Compromise of 1850. For proslavery southerners, the package offered a tough new fugitive slave law.
The law went into effect January 1, 1808. The international slave trade ban prohibited the importation of slaves from foreign countries or the preparation of vessels for the purpose of trade and punished those engaged in such illegal activities with prosecution, fines, and imprisonment.
Other compromises ensured that slave states could continue to import slaves until 1808, that Congress could not tax exports, and that slave owners could legally recover their escaped slaves. These compromises prompted decades of struggle for African-American civil rights.
The Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves of 1807 (2 Stat. 426, enacted March 2, 1807) is a United States federal law that prohibited the importation of slaves into the United States. It took effect on January 1, 1808, the earliest date permitted by the United States Constitution.
