Critique the following constitutional provision protecting the property of slave owners. What would be an advantage of this policy?

Question

“Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.”

States retain the power to decide what taxes will be paid to the federal government, thus increasing state autonomy.

The national government assesses taxation on an equal basis, regardless of state population size.

Taxes are divided on an equal basis regardless of race, ensuring taxation is fair.

Identifying enslaved people as property ensures that Southern slave states remain part of the Union.

Answer 1

One advantage of this policy is that it helps maintain unity within the Union by acknowledging and protecting the property rights of slave owners in Southern states. This provision helped to appease slaveholding states and prevent them from seceding from the Union, ultimately contributing to the preservation of the United States as a whole.