Answer :
Final answer:
A national law against slavery was required even after the Emancipation Proclamation because the Proclamation only applied to the rebelling states, leaving slavery unaffected in Union border states and areas of the Confederacy under Union control. The Thirteenth Amendment eventually abolished slavery nationwide.
Explanation:
A national law against slavery was needed after 1863 even though the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued because the Proclamation was limited in scope and effect. It declared the freedom of slaves only in the Confederacy, specifically in states that were still in rebellion against the Union. The Proclamation did not extend to slave-holding border states that remained in the Union or areas of the Confederacy under Union control. As a result, slavery still persisted in those regions, and a national law would be necessary to abolish slavery throughout the entire United States.
More comprehensive measures were taken following the Civil War to ensure the abolition of slavery, such as the Thirteenth Amendment, which finally put an end to slavery in all states. This national law was necessary because the Emancipation Proclamation, while a significant step, did not achieve the complete eradication of slavery on its own. The Amendment was passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified by the states on December 6, 1865, legally abolishing slavery throughout the country.