During the Constitutional Convention of 1787, there was a debate regarding the decision of abolishing the slave trade. The southern states opposed this idea due to the fact that slaves represented their workforce. Instead, they proposed that the slave trade should be taxed in order to bring profits for the government.
A compromise would be reached in which it was accorded that the slave trade would be permitted for 20 years and then forbidden in 1808. Southern delegates agreed with this, as they saw their short and medium-term interests preserved.
