On this date 219 years ago, The Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves of 1807 was passed by the U.S. Congress and signed by President Thomas Jefferson. The Act became effective January 1, 1808. In 1794, Congress had prohibited American ships from participating in the slave trade, but foreign ships were permitted to bring slaves to the U.S. until the 1808. The Act prohibited the import or export of slaves, but did not affect the slave trade within the U.S. The domestic slave trade became more important, and smuggling of slaves into U.S. ports persisted. Not until the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified in 1865 was slavery abolished in the U.S. This is yet another detail of U.S. History that I didn't absorb in school, or maybe it wasn't taught. We all know of the Civil War, the Thirteenth Amendment, and Jim Crow, but I think many of us never learned the details of long, tortuous path the United States took to abolishing slavery. In recent years, I've read some great books that fill in my understanding that history. Just last year, I read "We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution" by Jill Lepore, much of which is about the concept of amendment to and the importance of Article V in getting the constitution adopted. Lepore observes that amendment of the constitution has become more and more difficult over the centuries, and now originalism is using the constitution to impede and roll back the liberal consensus. I haven't finished "How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America" by Heater Cox Richardson. This book covers much more than the Civil War. It traces U.S. history from the founding up to the Civil War, in which not just blacks were not citizens, but also women. It observes that the Civil War was over slavery, yes, but more also how oligarchy enabled by owning slaves threatened the ideals of liberty, equality, opportunity, and democracy. And, yes, the book tells how equality suffered after the Civil War. And how we still struggle to create a society in line with our stated ideals. Years ago, I read Lepore's "These Truths: A History of the United States," and found it moving and revealing, as a boomer who was never taught that the U.S. had only recently come to revere civil rights and equal opportunity. Heck, I was only five years old when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enacted. I was brought up to believe innocent until proven guilty and due process were just obvious parts of human society. How hard it is now to see those principles whittled away. In 2021, I was glad for the opportunity to see, at Santa Cruz Shakespeare, The Agitators, a play by Mat Smart about the lifelong friendship between Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, my first exposure to the tension between abolitionists and women's suffragists as the Thirteenth Amendment was being passed. The Nineteenth Amendment wasn't ratified until 1920. "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." Let's remember that "bends toward justice" was coined by abolitionist minister Theodore Parker in 1853. Credits: https://w.wiki/J6hF https://w.wiki/J6iY https://urlzr.mp/zvb (Santa Cruz Sentinel) I really enjoyed today's ride from Oak Park Campground in Ventura County up to Tapo Canyon Campground. It felt quite easy, even though the first half was 100 feet ascent per mile. Strong sun, but in the 70s with nice breezes. I got a shower at Anytime Fitness and a sandwich from Subway before heading back to Oak Park, downhill, so not sweaty. I rode this same route in December, even including the shower stop. Five years ago I stayed for a night at Tapo Canyon on a bike camping trip from Ventura to Venice. That morning, I rode though Santa Susana Pass (https://ridewithgps.com/trips/68791423), and ever since, I've wanted to go back to Santa Susana. But maybe not on this trip.