Answer:
The Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States officially abolished and continues to prohibit slavery in the United States of America, and, with limited exceptions (such as those convicted of a crime) prohibited involuntary servitude.
At the time of ratification, slavery remained legal only in Delaware, Kentucky, Missouri, Maryland and New Jersey. In the rest of the United States slaves had been released by state action and the "Emancipation Proclamation" of the federal government.
Abraham Lincoln (who had promulgated the Proclamation) and others were concerned that the Emancipation Proclamation would be seen as a temporary measure only during the Civil War, and, therefore, in addition to the liberation of slaves in those states where slavery was still legal, they supported the Amendment as a means of guaranteeing the permanent abolition of slavery.
