# Was the Emancipation Proclamation Unconstitutional?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-emancipation-proclamation-unconstitutional/966269
**Category:** Great Debates
**Created:** [June 16, 2022, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-emancipation-proclamation-unconstitutional/966269 "2022-06-16T00:17:37Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
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### Author: ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)
#### Post date: [June 16, 2022, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-the-emancipation-proclamation-unconstitutional/966269/3 "2022-06-16T01:22:24Z")

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1. The slaves were, legally, the property of the slave owners.

2. The United States was at war with the Confederacy.

3. A nation may, in the course of prosecuting a war, deprive its enemies of property without compensating them for it.

Therefore, depriving the southern states of its slaves was (legally) no different than raiding a supply depot and making off with bundles of rations and ammunition.

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