The Kansas-Nebraska act was passed by the United-States congress on May 30, 1854. It basically allowed for the people residing in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether to allow slavery within their borders or not. One main reason why this was so contriversial is because it seemed to be a violation of the Missouri Compromise. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 prohibited slavery north of latitude 36'30. Therefore it was greatly opposed by the northern states because they felt that this violation would work against them in the struggle to free all of the slaves in America. The southern states, on the other hand, we very happy. Even though they knew that it was a violation of the Missouri Compromise they were happy that they might get the chance to make two more pro-slavery territories. The reason why congress passed this act was so that they could create amore profitible industry. They didn't realize how much they irritated the northern states. I think that it is alright for congress to irritate one group of states while pleasing another but it is not alright when they go against their old acts.
1.kansas-Nebraska created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska opened new lands. From:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas%E2%80%93Nebraska_Act 2.The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders. From:http://www.historyplace.com/lincoln/kansas.htm 3.The Great Plains area west of Missouri and Iowa was a refuge for thousands of Native Americans, but white settlers learned that these vast expanses offered opportunities for farming and ranching. The natives had no effective champions and would again be forced to give way to the whites' encroachment. From:http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h83.html
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Molly Buring
3/17/2010 08:04:34 am
The Kansas-Nebraska Act, made May 30, 1854, established the territories of Kansas and Nebraska by the US Congress. "It allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders." So basically, it was the citizen's choice for whether to have slavery, or not. Because of this, they chose not to have slavery. They agreed with the North when they say that they didn't need slaves and it wasn't right to have them. This is why it was so controversial. The south all had huge farms everywhere so they needed the free labor and the extra help, they couldn't do it by themselves. the North was scared that if they had slaves, the (free) slaves would take up all of the jobs and the rest of the population wouldn't have jobs. They didn't want to say that though so they all decided their reason for no slaves was that it was wrong to use men and women to do the work the employers couldn't.
sources: http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0827030.html http://www.historyplace.com/lincoln/kansas.htm my dad
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Jessica Reed
3/18/2010 10:58:04 am
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was an act proposed by Illinois Senator and the Senate Committee on Territories Chairman, Stephen Douglas, in 1854. The act suggested dividing the Nebraska Territory and creating two separate territories, Kansas and Nebraska. Furthermore, using popular sovereignty, or letting the residents of the territory decide, the decision would be made. However, if the residents passed the act the Missouri Compromise of 1820 would be violated. Therefore, from the moment the act was even created the tensions that had already been in the United States over slavery escalated. The South was very eager to pass the act because for over thirty years they had not been able to expand their land and slave labor above the southern boundary of Missouri. This act would be very advantageous to the South because as a whole section they could profit. The more land they had to farm the more room they had for slaves, which meant more money. On the other hand, the North, who mainly opposed slavery, was very upset by the act. They believed that slavery was horrible and that nobody should be treated like a piece of property. Northerners were also upset by the idea of the Missouri Compromise that they had worked so hard for be destroyed. Likewise, if the act was passed and Kansas and Nebraska became proslavery, the North could be outnumbered in Congress. However, after much debate and controversy the Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed into law and the tension that had been boiling over the last few years began to hit rock bottom.
My opinion of the act is that I think Stephen Douglas was wrong to create the act for his own benefit. He had wanted only two things: to benefit from trade in the West and to become President. So, he created this act in order to complete his goal. He first tried to complete his goal by creating the act so that it included that Kansas and Nebraska become separate territories. This would allow western expansion. Then, he decided to use popular sovereignty to merely gain more support from the South. He didn’t actually care about what the people wanted, but he just wanted to increase his popularity so that he could become the President. If Stephen Douglas had thought out what he was doing for his own gain, the immense controversy the Kansas- Nebraska Act created would have not happened.
Sources: Textbook Class notes http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/politics/es_shift.html# http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0833427.html
The Kansas-Nebraska Act, made May 30, 1854, established the territories of Kansas and Nebraska by the US Congress. "It allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders." So basically, it was the citizen's choice for whether to have slavery, or not. Because of this, they chose not to have slavery. They agreed with the North when they say that they didn't need slaves and it wasn't right to have them. The Great Plains area west of Missouri and Iowa was a refuge for thousands of Native Americans, but white settlers learned that these vast expanses offered opportunities for farming and ranching. The natives had no effective champions and would again be forced to give way to the whites' encroachment.
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jajjiko koloiliulink
5/27/2013 07:58:27 am
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