1788: Race, Gender and Property—the U.S. Constitution

     Even after the evils of slavery have become commonly known, its unfairness and cruelty is still mind-boggling.  It's nearly impossible to comprehend that any Christian could praise the mercies of God one moment and then return home to mistreat a fellow Christian solely because of their race.

     These "slaves" were not only denied their freedom, but their humanity as well. Due to the three-fifths compromise, slaves were given the voting rights of only three-fifths of a man, and by most slave-holders, they were considered less than human. In Uncle Tom's Cabin, even though Mr. Shelby treats the slaves with much more dignity than other slaveholders, he still fails to see his slaves as human beings. He is hopeful that his slaves will embrace religion, however, he displays skepticism that his slaves can even comprehend the deeper concepts of Christianity.