Maryland Law Review
Volume 71, Issue 1
The Thirteenth Amendment and the Meaning of Familial Bonds
By Julie Novkov [Full Text]
71 Md. L. Rev. 203 (2011).
The majority of Thirteenth Amendment literature focuses on the historical roots of the Amendment, the effects of emancipation, and its immediate and long-term significance. This Essay approaches the Thirteenth Amendment from a somewhat different perspective and think about the meaning of slavery in the context of familial relations. This line of inquiry follows feminist historians’ considerations of the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality in the antebellum and post-bellum years. By addressing the significance of military service, this Essay seeks to create a form of civic membership that exists alongside citizenship but does not depend on it. It will then suggest a next step forward, using contemporary debates over immigration and marriage rights to show how the Thirteenth Amendment can support not only robust rights claims by individuals, but also by the family unit as a whole.
Part I of this Essay will analyze the meaning of chattel slavery and trace the concepts of family, marriage, and military service throughout the emancipation era. Part II will explain the different perspectives through which scholars have seen the Thirteenth Amendment, involving both the individual and the family. Part III will examine how refocusing the Thirteenth Amendment on the family unit supports arguments for providing significant rights and protections to immigrants and gays and lesbians. Part IV will briefly summarize and conclude this Essay.
Suggested citation: Julie Novkov, The Thirteenth Amendment and the Meaning of Familial Bonds, 71 Md. L. Rev. 203 (2011).
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