Which area of the country was more racist in 19th Century America? Alexander Tsesis'
book (page 22) on the 13th Amendment has some unpleasant facts:
In 1859, Oregon was the only free state to enter the Union with a constitutional prohibition against blacks residing there. In 1861, an Iowa statute prohibited any free blacks from entering the state or subjected them to fines, but in a show of faux compassion the state allowed law-abiding blacks already living there to remain. Iowa followed an established line of Northern legislation designed to keep blacks from moving about the expanding country. Ohio, from 1803, effectively limited the number free blacks who could enter because it was practically impossible for them to pay the required $500 bond of good behavior. The Illinois Constitution of 1848 prohibited entry to free blacks. An 1853 Illinois law gave this provision effect, making it a misdemeanor for blacks and “mulattos” to enter the state for the purpose of residing there and subjecting them to a fine or, if unable to pay the $100 to $500, sale to forced labor to pay off the fine and court costs. Then, just a month before President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, during the state’s 1862 constitutional convention, Illinois adopted a constitutional article prohibiting blacks from immigrating to the state, which passed by a majority of 100,590 popular
votes.
A book well worth your time.
