A Comparative Legal Study of the Contemporary Meaning of "Freedom from Slavery"

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K13302
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 05010:Legal theory and history-related
• Research Institution: Shinshu University
• Principal Investigator: KOIKE Yohei 信州大学, 学術研究院総合人間科学系, 准教授 (50779121)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 奴隷的拘束からの自由 / 意に反する苦役の禁止 / 現代的奴隷制 / アメリカ合衆国憲法修正第13条 / 日本国憲法第18条

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study clarifies how the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was used as a norm in American society from 1865, when slavery was abolished, to the beginning of the twentieth century.
By analyzing legislation and case law from the same period, this study shows that the Thirteenth Amendment was not only directly significant in abolishing slavery, but also provided the basis for the creation of individuals with economic independence and the citizenship that came with it. In addition, it was shown that the Thirteenth Amendment had significance as a legal foundation for the suppression of forced labor and human trafficking.

Free Research Field

憲法学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

修正第13条が有する現代的意義を明らかにする本研究の成果は，日本国憲法第18条が保障する「奴隷的拘束からの自由」および「意に反する苦役の禁止」の具体的意義を検討するための視座を提供するものである。このような本研究の成果によって，これまで具体的に解釈が深められてこなかった日本国憲法第18条の解釈を深めることが可能となり，ひいては「労働のあり方」を巡る現代的問題を人権の観点から検討する可能性を拓くことができる。