What is the connection among sectionalism, slavery, and states' rights as causes of the civil war? How did the southern response to the 1860 election results demonstrate this connection ? Help please
The connection among sectionalism, slavery, and states' rights as causes of the Civil War can be understood as follows:
1. Sectionalism: During the years leading up to the Civil War, the United States was divided into two distinct regions – the North and the South. Sectionalism refers to the loyalty and interests individuals have towards their specific section or region rather than to the whole country. This division was mainly rooted in economic, political, and social differences between the North and the South.
2. Slavery: Slavery was a deeply divisive and controversial issue in the United States. The North had gradually abolished slavery while the South relied on the institution for its economy, particularly through plantation agriculture. The debates over whether slavery should expand into new territories or be abolished entirely heightened tensions between the North and the South.
3. States' Rights: The concept of states' rights asserts that individual states have the authority to make decisions regarding their own affairs without interference from the federal government. Southern states, driven by the desire to preserve their economic and social system heavily dependent on slavery, often invoked states' rights to justify their actions against federal intervention in slave-related matters.
The southern response to the 1860 election results demonstrated this connection by showing how the issue of slavery and states' rights became intertwined. Following the victory of Abraham Lincoln, an anti-slavery Republican candidate, southern states such as South Carolina quickly seceded from the Union. They argued that their states' rights were being violated by the federal government's potential interference with the institution of slavery, which they believed threatened their way of life and economic viability.
In summary, sectionalism exacerbated differences between the North and the South, slavery was a central point of contention that magnified these differences, and states' rights were invoked by the South to protect their economic and social system based on slavery. The southern states' reaction to the 1860 election results highlighted the extent to which these factors played a role in precipitating the Civil War.