Lesson 2.7 Notes (PDF) — SLAVERY WITHIN AMERICAN LAW

Guide students through the legal foundations of American slavery with this guided notes slide deck for Unit 2 of the AP African American Studies course. Lesson 2.7 examines how slave codes restricted the lives of enslaved people, connects the Stono Rebellion to South Carolina's 1740 slave code, confronts the hypocrisy of the Declaration of Independence, and traces how slavery was written into the U.S. Constitution itself — culminating in the Dred Scott decision.

📝 What's Included:

• ✅ Guided Notes (PDF + printable)
• 🖥️ Link to Editable version (Google Slides)
• 📊 Data chart analysis on slave codes and colonial Virginia's growing enslaved population (1625–1775)
• 🔥 Primary source and video analysis of the 1739 Stono Rebellion and the 1740 South Carolina Slave Code
• 📜 Primary source excerpt from the Declaration of Independence with a critical hypocrisy analysis
• ⚖️ Video and source organizer analysis on Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), including two excerpts from Chief Justice Taney's opinion
• 🏛️ Primary source analysis of Article I (Sections 2 & 9) and Article IV (Section 2) of the U.S. Constitution
• 🧠 Guided note-taking and source analysis prompts throughout

📚 Students Will Learn About:

• ⚖️ How slave codes legally defined U.S. chattel slavery as race-based, inheritable, and lifelong
• 🔥 The 1739 Stono Rebellion and how it directly shaped the harsher 1740 South Carolina Slave Code
• 📜 The contradiction between the Declaration of Independence's language of equality and the existence of American slave codes
• 🗺️ How non-slave states like New York and Ohio still restricted the rights of free Black people
• 🏛️ The Dred Scott v. Sandford decision and the legal reasoning used to deny Black Americans citizenship
• 📜 How slavery was protected in the U.S. Constitution through the Three-Fifths Compromise, the 1808 slave trade clause, and the Fugitive Slave Clause
• 🔟 How the 13th Amendment marked the first official use of the word "slavery" in the Constitution, abolishing it

🎯 Perfect For:

• ✔ AP African American Studies (Topic 2.7)
• ✔ 9th–12th Ethnic Studies, African American History, or U.S. History enrichment
• ✔ Black History Month or African American history lessons
• ✔ Primary source and legal document analysis, data chart interpretation
• ✔ Lessons exploring the legal history of American slavery and Black citizenship

📎 Formats:

✅ Ready-to-print PDF
✅ Includes link to Editable Google Slide Deck
✅ Class-ready in 15 minutes or less
✅ Download once. Use every year.

🖥️📝 LESSON 2.7 NOTES PREVIEW:

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