CLS: John Fazio

In this presentation, the speaker will argue that the institution of African slavery was the ultimate cause of the American Civil War, but that the cause had multiple dimensions, namely political, economic and social ones. Further, he will discuss the relationship between President Abraham Lincoln and the United States Supreme Court during Lincoln’s terms, especially as it related to the emancipation of the slaves. Still further, he will discuss the process of emancipation itself, including the events leading up to the Proclamation of September 22, 1862, which became effective on January 1, 1863; the country’s reaction to it; the slaves reaction to it; the effect it had on the rest of the war; and Lincoln’s and the Congress’s effort to cement the abolition of slavery by the enactment of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which was finally accomplished.

John C. Fazio has a B.A. and J.D. from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.  He now lives in Fairlawn, OH with his wife, Mary.  After practicing law for fifty years, he continues to be a student of history, especially European and American history, with special interest in the Civil War.  He is a member of the Cleveland Civil War Roundtable and has been its president.  He is also a member of the Lincoln Forum and the Western Reserve Historical Society and has taught Civil War history at Chautauqua Institution.  Fazio frequently speaks on the war and other subjects and has written and published more than 40 articles on the war and other subjects.  In addition, he has written Decapitating the Union: Jefferson Davis, Judah Benjamin and the Plot to Assassinate Lincoln (2016) and his second book, Who Really Killed Lincoln: Four Smoking Guns, is awaiting publication.