THREE FIFTHS OF A HUMAN BEING

“THREE FIFTHS OF A HUMAN BEING”

            July 12, 1787 (230 years ago) was a huge and terrible day in American history.  It was the day that the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia voted to include the “three-fifths” clause in the newly proposed Constitution of the United States.   In its final form, it appeared in Article 1, Section 2, paragraph 3 as:

“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.”

            Underlying this legalese was a debate over how a national tax should be determined and how numbers of representatives to Congress (the lower house, in their British-oriented minds) should be determined.  As Lawrence Goldstone writes in his fine book “Dark Bargain:  Slavery, Profits, and the Struggle for the Constitution,” at the heart of much of the discussion over the Constitution was the survival or the extinction of slavery.   Slave-holding states did not want to acknowledge the equal humanity of those held as slaves, but they did want to gain political power by using the number of slaves to increase their number of representatives.  As has happened in much of American history, the view of those holding people as slaves prevailed. 

            Many scholars point out that the Constitution does not say that people of  African descent were 60% human, but the practical use of this phrase solidified in the American mind the idea that people of African descent are not equal in their humanity to those who are classified as “white.”  Indeed, in its infamous Dred and Harriet Scott decision of 1857, Chief Justice Roger Taney and the majority of the Supreme Court used this clause to conclude (7-2 vote) that people of African descent were not equal human beings and thus were not entitled to any rights under the Constitution.

            Many scholars also point out that the passage of the 13^th, 14^th, and 15^th Amendments to the Constitution after the Civil War nullified the “three-fifths” clause. Yet from 1877-1965, the white South (and much of the rest of the country) worked hard to re-apply the Dred and Harriet Scott decision and to re-establish “slavery by another name,” to use Doug Blackmon’s powerful phrase.   As we all know, it worked.  The idea of slavery being a “natural” state for those of African descent prevailed politically for 100 years after the end of the Civil War.  That idea still reverberates in the hearts of many white Americans and in the hearts of others who have swallowed this poisonous Kool-Aid.

            Because of this terrible history, I do believe that it is worthwhile and necessary to begin discussions about amending the Constitution to explicitly nullify the “three fifths” clause, so that it is firmly stated in the Constitution that this terrible plague of racism and slavery are specifically repudiated by the Constitution and by the American people.  Obviously the current Congress would not even consider such an amendment, but we must start the discussion.  Even if the proposed amendment never saw a congressional vote, it might motivate a national discussion about the reality and the legacy of the twin demonic powers of racism and slavery in our history and in our present life.  The main reason that racism remains so powerful in American life is that those of us classified as “white” are still in denial about its power in the past and in the present.  Such a discussion would call us to acknowledge the demonic power of racism in our history and in our current society.

            I am no lawyer or constitutional scholar or historian, but here is my first attempt at a draft of such an amendment to the Constitution – baby steps!

            HUMAN BEINGS AMENDMENT

 “This amendment to the Constitution specifically repeals the phrase “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,” of Article 1, Section 2, paragraph 3,” and replaces it with the phrase “which shall be determined by the number of American citizens.  All American citizens are acknowledged to be 100% human beings in this Constitution.”

I’ll be glad to hear your comments on this idea and this proposed amendment.  If you think it is unnecessary, please tell me why.  If you think that the proposed amendment needs improvement (that will undoubtedly be the case), please suggest changes.  If you think that it is a good idea and should be discussed and pushed forward, please send it to your Congressperson or Senator.  After a period of reflection, I’ll be contacting mine.  I’d love to hear from you on this!