American Government / Unit 1 Gov 030 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Three-Fifths Compromise
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The idea
The Three-Fifths Compromise counted three-fifths of a state's enslaved population when apportioning House seats and direct taxes.
In practice
Slaveholding states gained House seats from people those same states denied every right.
Where people slip
The original constitutional text embedded slavery's arithmetic; amendment later removed it.
Your place on the trail
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Builds on
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