Introduction The origin of the Emancipation Proclamation was based on the progressive movement in the North. It began as a social movement within various local areas, which slowly progressed towards the national level. It attempted to address issues such as poverty and the treatment of slaves under the assumption that most of society’s problems could actually be “fixed” by initiating social and political reforms. Thesis For those in the South, their rural agricultural culture was entwined significantly with the concept of slave labor. This means that the use of slaves, their presence in society as well as the general attitude of people towards them was an indelible aspect of who they were as compared to the North. It is due to this that when the North proposed freedom of slaves, the South violently reacted since it would have denied them an aspect of their culture. Background The involvement of the South in the slave trade came as a result of three distinct factors: the expansion of the U.S. into new territories, the need for manpower in order to operate newly established farms, and the economics of free labor that came with owning a slave. Basically, the slave trade was merely the result of economics at work wherein the demand for labor was supplied with slaves captured from Africa. Behind the continued use of the slave trade in the South was the overwhelming demand of Europe for cheap sugar exports wherein slave labor was the means by which the South was able to meet the demand for its products. Seeing males, females, and children brought from the ships chained and shackled to each other and sold on an open block was often viewed negatively by various colonial residents as such slave ports needed to be located in areas where the processes behind slavery were not immediately seen. This was one of the reasons why the Civil War started in the first place since there was a difference of opinion regarding the morality of treating human beings like cattle. The Economics Behind the Use of Slaves The economics of the slave trade focused around the perceived cost of production without slaves and the actual cost of production with slaves. The Importance of Slave Labor to the South The various plantations in the South primarily relied on slave labor as a form of manpower in order to produce various agricultural products such as cotton, which was then subsequently shipped off to other countries around the world. As the South expanded, so did the number of its farms and communities, which produced primarily agricultural goods to be shipped to Europe and other regions. The inherent problem with this scenario lies with the fact that agricultural operations require extensive amounts of manpower in order to properly grow crops, which, unfortunately, the various colonies lacked. The actual cost of a product with slaves is exponentially lower since slaves are not paid wages, and the cost required for keeping them sheltered and fed is much lower as compared to hiring the same amount of people to do the same type of work. Profit and Slave Labor In terms of profitability, slave labor resulted in considerable profits for various sectors in the Fledgling American economy, which contributed immensely towards its growth. Slave owners often reached profit margins exceeding 20 to 50% on most trips due to the amounts made from the sale of goods traded for slaves (Austin 61). However, despite the inherent benefits associated with the practice, it was the way in which the slaves were treated and the various stories of torture and abuse coming from