The Fugitive Slave Clause and the Constitution

This short video reviews the controversy over a fugitive slave clause. Northern states were opposed to including a fugitive slave clause in the Constitution. Professor John Kaminski tell the story of Quock Walker, an escaped slave, who was not returned to his owner in 1781 because a Massachusetts Supreme Court Justice ruled that slavery was unconstitutional based upon the MA Constitution. With the inclusion of a fugitive slave clause in the US Constitution, MA was no longer an asylum state.

Grades

10, 11, 12

Resource Types

Video

Teaching Strategies

Lecture

Duration

3 minutes

Constitution Articles

Article I