Fugitive slave laws

The Fugitive Slave Acts were two federal laws that concerned runaway slaves in the United States.^[1] The two acts were passed in 1793 and in 1850. They required federal involvement in catching runaway slaves in Northern States.^[2] The laws were designed to protect Southern slave owners.^[3] They required those states and jurisdictions to help in the capture and delivery of fugitive slaves.^[3] The laws were very unpopular in the North. They caused a great deal of resentment in the years leading up to the American Civil War.

1. ↑ "Fugitive Slave Acts". History. A&E Television Networks, LLC. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
2. ↑ Anthony J. Sebok, 'Judging the Fugitive Slave Acts', The Yale Law Journal, Vol. 100, No. 6 (April, 1991), p. 1835
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Earl Maltz. "Fugitive Slave Laws". Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanitie. Retrieved 15 November 2016.