The Promises of Freedom: The Contemporary Relevance of the Thirteenth Amendment
13 Pages Posted: 24 Nov 2013
Date Written: November 15, 2013
Abstract
This article, an expanded version of the author's remarks at the 2013 Honorable Clifford Scott Green Lecture at the Temple University Beasley School of Law, illuminates the history and the context of the Thirteenth Amendment. This article contends that the full scope of the Thirteenth Amendment has yet to be realized and offers reflections on why it remains an underenforced constitutional norm. Finally, this article demonstrates the relevance of the Thirteenth Amendment to addressing contemporary forms of racial inequality and subordination.
Keywords: Thirteenth Amendment, badges and incidents of slavery, Constitutional interpretation, original intent, discrimination, Critical Race Theory, civil rights, racial equality, slavery, abolition, judicial interpretation, legislative history, United States, jurisprudence, Jones v. Alfred H. Myer Co.
JEL Classification: K19, K30, K39, K49, J71
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation