12AD.4.2a Emancipation Proclamation

Excerpt from the Emancipation Proclamation, January 1, 1863 And by virtue of the power, and for the purpose aforesaid, I do order and declare that all persons held as slaves within said designated States, and parts of States, are, and henceforward shall be free; and that the Executive government of the United States, including the military and naval authorities thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of said persons. And I hereby enjoin upon the people so declared to be free to abstain from all violence, unless in necessary self-defence; and I recommend to them that, in all cases when allowed, they labor faithfully for reasonable wages. And I further declare and make known, that such persons of suitable condition, will be received into the armed service of the United States to garrison forts, positions, stations, and other places, and to man vessels of all sorts in said service. And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of justice, warranted by the Constitution, upon military necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment of mankind, and the gracious favor of Almighty God… By the President: ABRAHAM LINCOLN WILLIAM H. SEWARD, Secretary of State. The Emancipation Proclamation was issued during the third year of the Civil War. A first draft was issued on September 22, 1862, giving states that seceded from the Union a chance to respond. When they didn’t, the Proclamation of 1863 was issued. Executive directives are proclamations, memos, agreements, orders, and signing statements by the president. Executive directives have been used for managing an executive department, creating new agencies, establishing laws in areas in which Congress has been silent, setting up relief programs in times of crisis, and recruiting for war efforts.What policy does this executive directive specifically enact? This directive is regarded as one of the most important documents in American history. How does this directive take on new roles and a new scope for the presidency? How does this seem to be a break from the past?

The Emancipation Proclamation was issued during the third year of the Civil War. A first draft was issued on September 22, 1862, giving states that seceded from the Union a chance to respond. When they didn’t, the Proclamation of 1863 was issued. Executive directives are proclamations, memos, agreements, orders, and signing statements by the president. When based on the authority of the president as derived from the Constitution or other laws, they may have the force and effect of law. However, the Constitution identifies legislative powers, or the power to make laws, as a sole power of Congress, the legislative branch, rather than the president. Thus, the executive directives are implied powers of the president, since they are not explicitly stated in the Constitution. Executive directives have been used for managing an executive department, creating new agencies, establishing laws in areas in which Congress has been silent, setting up relief programs in times of crisis, and recruiting for war efforts. As your students consider both the historical context for the Emancipation Proclamation and the legacy it put in place, the following questions will help them understand its significance: What policy does this executive directive enact? This document is regarded as on of the most important presidential directives in American history. How does it allow the presidency to take on new roles, and in what ways does it alter the scope of the presidency? How does this seem to be a break from the past?

January 1, 1863

By the President of the United States of America:

A Proclamation.

Whereas, on the twenty-second day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, to wit:

"That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom.

"That the Executive will, on the first day