Painstaking steps forward

The 13th amendment abolishing slavery was ratified in 1865 but a generation later most blacks in the South were not free.

Philadelphia Inquirer – January 31, 2013

On this last day of January in 1865, the House of Representatives passed a proposal for a constitutional ban on slavery. In Steven Spielberg’s latest film, Abraham Lincoln is the consummate politician who, in the midst of a great war and facing determined resistance in Congress, made it happen.

Daniel Day-Lewis in Steven Spielberg´s film "Lincoln."

But before we join the “Why can’t President Obama be more like Lincoln?” chorus, it’s worth noting that the 13th Amendment was less a great leap forward than a single conflicted step.

 

 

Daniel Day Lewis in Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln.”

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