Oregon black exclusion laws

Early white settlers in the Oregon Country often held both anti-slavery and anti-black beliefs, and many came from states, such as Missouri, which had some version of exclusion laws. One early migrant wrote that Oregon pioneers "hated slavery, but a much larger number of them hated free negroes worse even than slaves". In 1843, the Provisional Government of Oregon established a set of organic laws, including a ban on slavery: "There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said territory otherwise than in the punishment of crimes whereof the party shall have been duly convicted." Enforcement of the law was left unclear. After a vote on June 26, 1844, the first black exclusion law reiterated a ban on all slavery in Oregon territory, and it forced black and mulatto settlers to leave Oregon territory within three years (two years for men) or be whipped "no more than 39 times". That section was amended in December 1844 to permit a free slave to be resold on the condition that the slave owner agree to remove them from the territory at the end of the contract, which was held with the provisional government. In effect, that re-established slavery on a temporary basis for three years. The law was repealed in 1845 without any such punishment ever being carried out. In 1857, delegates to Oregon's constitutional convention submitted an exclusion clause to voters, as well as a proposal to legalize slavery. Voters within Oregon ended up rejecting the slavery, but it was approved by the exclusion clause which was originated and imported within the Bill of Rights within the new state's constitution. Oregon then became the only free state admitted within the Union. On September 21, 1849, the Territorial Legislature established its second exclusion law, declaring a ban on "any negro or mulatto to enter into, or reside" in Oregon unless already established there. At least four black people were punished under this law, including Jacob Vanderpool, a sailor, and three others who were eventually permitted to stay. This specific law was justified by claims that Black people may "intermix with Indians, instilling into their minds feeling of hostility toward the white race. This specific law was rescinded in 1854. An 1850 census showed fewer than 50 black residents in the state of Oregon, including a mixed-race man from Pennsylvania, George Bush, who was forced to move North of the Columbia River after the first exclusion Law was passed. On April 16, 1852, Robin Holmes, a black slave of Nathaniel Ford, brought a case to the territorial Supreme Court, charging that he and his family were being held by Ford illegally. Holmes v. Ford was heard by four judges, culminating in Judge George Henry Williams' June 1853 ruling that slavery was illegal in Oregon. Descendants of Holmes have since stated that Ford had encouraged the lawsuit as a means to bring an end to slavery in the state. On November 7, 1857, Oregon's delegates to the state Constitutional Convention submitted proposals to legalize slavery and to ban black people from the state, including a ban on signing contracts or owning land. The slavery amendment failed, but the exclusion law passed. Oregon was the only state admitted to the Union with such an exclusion law. There are no records that this law was enforced, and the legislature voted down a proposed 1865 law that would authorize sheriffs to deport black residents in their counties. ==1844 law and amendments==

The Cockstock incident was a major factor in the passage of the first black exclusion law. It centered on a fight between a Molala man, Cockstock, and a free black man, James D. Saules, over ownership of a horse. The law had an unknown impact on black people in the state, and no records suggest it was ever directly enforced. Concern over the potential applicability of the exclusion law (which was understood to forbid black land ownership) to Washington lands prior to the creation of a separate Washington Territory later led Congress to pass a private law confirming Bush's title over his lands. Text of the 1844 law and amendments Though the official text of the original law has been lost, it was reprinted in several sources at the time. The law as described contained eight sections, and two amendments were added in December 1844. The Oregon exclusion law prohibited free black men and women in the territory, though jurisdiction for the law was limited to the region south of the Columbia river. December amendment ==1849 law==

In September 1849, the legislature passed another exclusion law, with a preamble arguing that "it would be highly dangerous to allow free negroes and mulattos to reside in the Territory or to intermix with the Indians, instilling in their minds feelings of hostility against the white race". The 1849 law ordered any black people entering the territory to leave within 40 days. It was applied in 1851 to Jacob Vanderpool, a West Indian who had migrated to Oregon City. A white resident of the city brought a case against Vanderpool, who was arrested and ordered to leave Oregon within 30 days. The family of Abner Hunt Francis were ordered out of the state within 40 days, but were allowed to stay after a petition was signed by 225 citizens. The petition formed the basis of a failed coalition to amend the exclusion law to allow for good behavior bonds by black settlers. The Francis family moved to Canada in 1861. A petition was also used in 1854 to prevent the deportation of Morris Thomas and Jane Snowden. Oregon's congressional delegate, Samuel Thurston, while seeking to limit federal land grants to white people, described the law to congress: The law was repealed in 1854. ==1857 law==

In 1857, after Oregon voters had voted for statehood, they subsequently called for a constitutional convention. The emergent constitution contained 185 sections, 172 of which were taken from various other state constitutions, with the additions primarily being racial exclusion or finance related. The document enshrined an exclusion law into Section 35 of the Bill of Rights within the Oregon State Constitution. John McBride, later a state senator, described the amendment: "It was largely an expression against any mingling of the white with any of the other races, and upon a theory that as we had yet no considerable representation of other races in our midst, we should do nothing to encourage their introduction. We were building a new state on virgin ground; its people believed it should encourage only the best elements to come to us, and discourage others." The question of slavery itself was put to a popular vote, with the public voting against slavery (by a vote of 7,727 to 2,645) but in favor of racial exclusion policies (by a vote of 8,640 to 1,081). The final constitution barred "negroes, mulattos and Chinamen" from voting or owning land in the state. ==Repeal==

Oregon's racially discriminatory state constitutional amendment, Section 35, was legally invalidated after the Civil War by the ratification of the 14th Amendment to the federal Constitution in 1868. However, Section 35 remained formally on the books for another 58 years. In 1925, the Oregon legislature proposed the formal repeal of Section 35, adopted as House Joint Resolution 8 (1925). The measure was referred to Oregon voters as a 1926 ballot initiative which was approved with 62.5% in favor. Measure 14 in 2002, approved by a vote of 71%–29%, removed references to the 1857 referendum from the constitution. Legacy From 1850 to 1860, Oregon saw its Black population increase by just 75, compared to an increase of 4,000 in neighboring California. Oregon's Black exclusion laws have been linked to a below-average Black population – two percent – into the present day. Historian Cheryl Brooks has argued that Oregon's small Black population has made it difficult for Oregonians to recognize racial discrimination problems in the state. ==See also==