Civil Rights,
Constitutional Law,
Government
Sep. 2, 2021
The California travails of former slave Archy Lee
As California applied for statehood in 1850, the slavery debate was consuming the nation. California intensified the debate, because, as a free state, it would tip the then-balance of 15 free and 15 slave states.
John S. Caragozian
Email: caragozian@gmail.com
John is a Los Angeles-based lawyer and sits on the Board of the California Supreme Court Historical Society. He welcomes ideas for future monthly columns on California's legal history at caragozian@gmail.com.
As California applied for statehood in 1850, the slavery debate was consuming the nation. California intensified the debate, because, as a free state, it would tip the then-balance of 15 free and 15 slave states.
The U. S. Congress' infamous Compromise of 1850 admitted California, but also included a Fugitive Slave Act to strengthen slave owners' power.
The act penalized people who ...
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