Emancipation File

[Mary Hargrove]

Atthe outset of that conflict, Lincoln insisted that the war was not about freeing enslaved people in the South but about preserving the Union. Four border slave states (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri) remained on the Union side, and many others in the North also opposed abolition. When one of his generals, John C. Frmont, put Missouri under martial law, declaring that Confederate sympathizers would have their property seized, and their enslaved people would be freed (the first emancipation proclamation of the war), Lincoln directed him to reverse that policy, and later removed him from command.

In July 1862, Congress passed the Militia Act, which allowed Black men to serve in the U.S. armed forces as laborers, and the Confiscation Act, which mandated that enslaved people seized from Confederate supporters would be declared forever free. Lincoln also tried to get the border states to agree to gradual emancipation, including compensation to enslavers, with little success. When abolitionists criticized him for not coming out with a stronger emancipation policy, Lincoln replied that he valued saving the Union over all else.

On January 1, Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which included nothing about gradual emancipation, compensation for enslavers or Black emigration and colonization, a policy Lincoln had supported in the past. Lincoln justified emancipation as a wartime measure, and was careful to apply it only to the Confederate states currently in rebellion. Exempt from the proclamation were the four border slave states and all or parts of three Confederate states controlled by the Union Army.

Finally, the Emancipation Proclamation paved the way for the permanent abolition of slavery in the United States. As Lincoln and his allies in Congress realized emancipation would have no constitutional basis after the war ended, they soon began working to enact a Constitutional amendment abolishing slavery. By the end of January 1865, both houses of Congress had passed the 13th Amendment, and it was ratified that December.

Select your mobile carrier Select your mobile carrierBoost MobileCricket WirelessAlltelGoogle FiMetroPCSAT&TRepublic WirelessSprintT-MobileVerizonU.S. CellularVirgin Mobile We'll only use this mobile number to send this link What emancipation meansYou are free from the custody and control of your parents (or guardians) If you're emancipated, you can do many things that you would normally need your parent's permission to do. For example, you can live where you want. You can also apply for a work permit, keep the money you earn, get a credit card, and sign up for school without needing your parent's permission or consent.

If you're emancipated, you'll need to support yourself. Your parents are no longer required to support you and no longer control your finances. You will be responsible for any money you owe, and you can also be sued in court.

Some laws that apply to children will still apply to you. For example, you still must go to school. You would still need your parent's permission to marry. You have to wait until you are 18 to vote, and wait until you are 21 to drink or buy alcohol. Someone who has sex with an emancipated minor can still be arrested for statutory rape, unless they are legally married to each other.

No. Even if you're a parent, if you are under 18 your parents still have the right to custody of you and the responsibility to support you, until you turn 18 or become legally emancipated. If you're a teen parent who applies to become emancipated, you will still need to tell the court how you will support yourself financially. The court may not agree to an emancipation if your only source of income is child support or public assistance (welfare).

Whether to become emancipated is a serious decision. Talk to a trusted adult and ask a lawyer questions. You can also get more information from Legal Services for Children, which has an Emancipation Manual for teenagers. Your local court's Self-Help Center staff may be able to give you more information about the court process, and you may be able to get advice from a free or low-cost lawyer.

Emancipation is a legal process conducted through the District Court which declares a minor over the age of 16 to be independent of his or her parents or guardians. The qualifications and procedures for doing this are found in 15 MRS 3506-A. The Maine Judicial Branch website has a PDF version of the petition form and the Kids Legal website has a good discussion of emancipation.

Include a statement explaining your living situation, why you want to be emancipated, and how you are supporting yourself. If you have children, tell how you are supporting them. You could also include letters from your employer and your landlord.

If you know where your parents live, but you do not wish to notify one or both of them about this petition, you must state ALL your reasons and request the court waive notification to your parents. The hearing date is obtained at the time your petition is filed.

After you have completed the forms and all necessary attachments and obtained your parents signatures (if possible), take the original plus three copies and the attachments to the civil clerk's office or you may submit by mail and must include a self addressed stamped envelope for return of your conformed copies. A filing fee of $320.00 is required at the time of filing or an application for the fee waiver. Click here for more information about the fee waiver.

The Court will notify the District Attorney's Office of the existence of the petition. The District Attorney's Office will check to see if your parents are collecting support for you. If so, they will oppose the petition. If not, the judge will:

If the judge finds that all notice and consent requirements have been met or waived and that emancipation is not contrary to your best interests, the judge may grant your petition prior to your hearing date without an appearance. You can check the probate notes to obtain more information regarding your case.

The judge may, at the time of hearing, request that the parties undergo court mediation prior to making a decision on the petition. At that time, your case will be continued to another date and you will be ordered to go set a mediation date at the Civil Division.

If the judge grants your petition for emancipation without a hearing, you will receive your copies of the filed documents via mail. You must submit the Declaration of Emancipation for signature. If the judge grants your petition for emancipation after a hearing is held, you will receive your copies of the filed documents at that time. The clerk will file the original Declaration of Emancipation and return your copies to you to keep as proof of your emancipation. You will need to put these papers in a safe place; you may need to show these copies to employers, landlords, doctors, school officials, or others who would otherwise require parental consent.

If you want to notify the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) about your emancipation, complete an Emancipation Minor's Application to California Department of Motor Vehicles (MC-315) form and take it to the DMV along with a certified copy of the Declaration of Emancipation.

Emancipation is usually permanent. However, if there are statements on your petition that are not true, or if you become unable to support yourself, the court may set aside the Declaration of Emancipation.

On December 31, 1862, our Nation marked the end of another year of civil war. At Shiloh and Seven Pines, Harpers Ferry and Antietam, brother had fought against brother. Sister had fought against sister. Blood and bitterness had deepened the divide that separated North from South, eroding the bonds of affection that once united 34 States under a single flag. Slavery still suspended the possibility of an America where life and liberty were the birthright of all, not the province of some.

Yet, even in those dark days, light persisted. Hope endured. As the weariness of an old year gave way to the promise of a new one, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation -- courageously declaring that on January 1, 1863, "all persons held as slaves" in rebellious areas "shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free." He opened the Union Army and Navy to African Americans, giving new strength to liberty's cause. And with that document, President Lincoln lent new moral force to the war by making it a fight not just to preserve, but also to empower. He sought to reunite our people not only in government, but also in freedom that knew no bounds of color or creed. Every battle became a battle for liberty itself. Every struggle became a struggle for equality.

Our 16th President also understood that while each of us is entitled to our individual rights and responsibilities, there are certain things we cannot accomplish on our own. Only a Union could serve the hopes of every citizen, knocking down the barriers to opportunity and giving each of us the chance to pursue our highest aspirations. He knew that in these United States, no dream could ever be beyond our reach when we affirm that individual liberty is served, not negated, by seeking the common good.

It is that spirit that made emancipation possible and codified it in our Constitution. It is that belief in what we can do together that moved millions to march for justice in the years that followed. And today, it is a legacy we choose not only to remember, but also to make our own. Let us begin this new year by renewing our bonds to one another and reinvesting in the work that lies ahead, confident that we can keep driving freedom's progress in our time.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 1, 2013, as the 150th Anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. I call upon all Americans to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that celebrate the Emancipation Proclamation and reaffirm the timeless principles it upheld.

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