Following the antebellum period, the United States entered into a period of strong sectionalism. A majority of the North, with an industrial economy, felt that slavery, one of the most controversial issues of the time, should be abolished. The South, however, relied on vast numbers of cheap labor to support their agricultural economy. This labor was provided by slavery, which led the South to desire slavery to continue. These conflicting opinions led to debates, the secession of the south from the union and the American Civil War.
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