– States that neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist within the U.S., except as a punishment for a crime for which the party has been duly convicted.
: While the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 freed enslaved people in Confederate-held territory, the 13th Amendment was necessary to make abolition a permanent, national policy applicable to all states, including loyal border states.
The ( Enmienda XIII ) to the U.S. Constitution, ratified on December 6, 1865 , is the landmark legal provision that formally abolished slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States. Core Provisions The amendment consists of two critical sections: