Lincoln did his best to abolish slavery and liberate blacks. Was Lincoln white or black?

Lincoln was white, of course, and his purpose was not to liberate slaves.

American Civil War and Black Status: Yankee

For a long time, in people's minds, the American Civil War has always been regarded as a conflict between "liberating slaves and freedom and dignity endowed by the Constitution" and expanding freedom and democracy. This is firmly believed by many people who blindly worship beautiful women and the west. In fact, this is a typical political myth.

First of all, the second item of Article 1 of the American Constitution clearly stipulates that in matters such as the calculation of seats in Congress, a black slave is equal to three-fifths of free men. There is no equality for slaves. Item 9 of Article 1 also stipulates that before 1808, no legislation shall be made to prohibit the importation of slaves. Article 4, paragraph 2, is even simpler: slaves who fled other countries must be returned to their original owners and remain slaves.

Secondly, the fundamental motive of civil war is not the conflict between democracy and autocracy. It is an increasingly backward economic system in the south, which cannot adapt to the large-scale industrial production in the north after the industrial revolution. The outbreak of the North-South conflict is the result of irreconcilable economic contradictions and has nothing to do with high-profile democracy and freedom.

Look at the American national hero Lincoln himself: 186 1 when he took office in March, he clearly declared that the Federation would not interfere with the existing slavery system in each state. There is no liberation of slaves. Lincoln's only concern was to restore national unity. He believed that the southern states had no right to secede from the Union. Even so, he was very restrained, saying that the federal authorities would not take action as long as the rebel state in the south did not infringe on the federal property, institutions and personnel in the state. Of course, he opposed the south for the sake of slaves, but the rebel States in the south were impatient. 186 1, 15 In April, the federal fortress in China was shelled and the civil war broke out.

After the Civil War began, four slave states within the Federation, namely Kentucky, Missouri, Maryland and Delaware, hovered between the north and the south. Lincoln informed the states that as long as the federal government was loyal to the central government, it would never "liberate slaves". This strategy really worked: most whites in four States supported the federal government, and the governor of Missouri had to go into exile in the south. Moreover, Lincoln also made it clear that the northern generals could confiscate the property of slave owners, including slaves, but they had no right to liberate slaves.

Lincoln himself has always used nigger to refer to blacks, and he can also see his true feelings for blacks. He clearly stated in a letter 1862: "If the form requires us to liberate slaves, we will be liberated; If the form does not need to be liberated, we will not be liberated; Form requires us to liberate one part rather than the other, and we will do the same. "

1863 The Emancipation Declaration was proclaimed on New Year's Day. In this way, we can get more sufficient troops; Second, it can crack down on traitors economically, which is equivalent to "confiscating the property of traitors." The liberation of slaves depends entirely on whether the region or even the slave owners themselves participate in the rebellion; Third, we can take this as a call to actively carry out public opinion propaganda to please countries such as Britain and France that flaunt civilization; You can kill two birds with one stone. Lincoln was really brave.

Because of this, there are many "proviso" in the Emancipation Declaration. For example, it only applies to rebel States. Even in the rebellious states, West Virginia (divided into West Virginia after the war) still respects the 48 counties of the Federation and is free from abolishing slavery-as long as national unity is maintained, everything is negotiable.

As late as April 1864, Lincoln also hinted that the south could still accommodate slavery as long as it supported the Federation. He also sent negotiators to prepare for the implementation of "one country, two systems", saying that "reunification should be restored first, and on this basis, other issues can be discussed easily." Later, the negotiators failed to make the trip because North Korea won a great military victory. 1in April 865, the Confederate army surrendered and the United States was unified. Abolition of slavery was only a by-product.

Therefore,1On April 8, 1999, Premier Zhu Rongji said at a joint press conference between Chinese and American leaders: "I think President Lincoln used force to safeguard the integrity of the United States and oppose independence and division. We should learn from President Lincoln. " This metaphor is very apt.