Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
30th Annual Conference
“Initium Novum”
Committee: Confederacy
Topic: Crisis
My name is Jason Mulcahy and I will be your head chair for this conference. I've been in
MUN for four years, and have TWO commendations to show for it. If you have any questions
about the committee, your position, or anything else, feel free to e-mail me at
mvhsmunconfederacy@gmail.com, where creative titles are our job. I look forward to seeing you
all at our conference, we will have a wonderful time crushing the union.
Hi, I'm Ben McAllister, and I'll be your vice chair for this wonderful conference. I've had bad
luck with both of my wives (the first left me and the second didn't). However, I am currently a
Junior at MVHS and and I do many things outside of my boring, slave-like school schedule. Not
only am I in MUN, but I also play tennis for my school and I am in OCAD (you may have heard
of it - it's a waste of time). My future plans include becoming a Senior at MVHS and learning
various things such as the ukelele, the banjo, Wing Chun (the martial arts Bruce Lee learned) and
card throwing. I look forward to spending a high majority of the weekend with you, and I know
I'm not a player but you're still a hater; elevator to the top, hah, see ya later. I'm gone.
I. Background of Topic
The United States of America signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776, becoming
an independent nation. This was a very glorious time for many people, however, several years
later, a few controversial beliefs generated major unrest between the North and the South. During
American Independence, argument ensued over the status of slaves in the new nation. One such
debate was during the Constitutional Convention, when it was argued if slaves counted as people
for taxation and representation purposes. It was eventually settled that they would count as threefifths of a person. This decline in slaves also led to a decline in manufactured goods, and profit.
Because of this, the slave trade became a very important part of many peoples’ business and
success; therefore, when several people began speaking against slavery, this topic became a very
heated discussion. The argument was furthered when Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin, which
turned the textile industry and America into a very successful economic powerhouse. The
argument reached new heights when Anti-slavery forcers successfully stopped the flow of trade
of slaves between Africa and America. However, this argument was temporarily solved with the
passing of the Missouri Compromise. The Missouri Compromise prohibited slavery in the
Louisiana Territory, except for in the state of Missouri above the 36’30. This document,
however, did not permanently solve the issue of slavery. Although this led to short term
cooperation, it further estranged the differing views between the North and the South, and their
different view on many issues caused more rifts to form, the Northerners trying to push their
ways onto others. In 1828, South Carolina started the nullification crisis, a sectional crisis during
the presidency of Andrew Jackson created by South Carolina's reaching its point with
the 1832 Ordinance of Nullification. This ordinance declared by the power of the State that the
federal Tariffs of 1828 and 1832 were unconstitutional and null and void within the sovereign
boundaries of south Carolina. The controversial and highly protective Tariff of 1828 was enacted
into law during the presidency of John Quincy Adams, which was clearly Northern favored and
unfair for the hard-working south. In 1831, the Nat Turner slave revolt was put down in Virginia,
which led to further subjugation of slaves in the south much to the dismay of the North, although
it was rightfully done. As a response, the Abolitionist movement found a leader in crazy man
Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
30th Annual Conference
“Initium Novum”
William Lloyd Garrison, who wrote The Liberator newspaper. The situation became so fierce
that in 1930, the “gag rule” was imposed which that no discussion of slavery in the House of
Representatives was considered. In 1846, The Wilmot Proviso, was suggested, an outrageous
law, which would have banned slavery in any territory to be acquired from Mexico in the
Mexican War, or in the future, including the area later known as the Mexican Cession. It never
passed, luckily. Later, the Compromise of 1850 was passed, where California was allowed to
become a free state and the slave trade was abolished in Washington D.C., Utah and New
Mexico were given popular sovereignty, and the Fugitive Slave Act was passed. The
Compromise clearly favored the North, further pushing their wrong ideas onto the South. In
1854, the Kansas Nebraska act was passed, giving both territories popular sovereignty in
exchange for the transcontinental railroad being built in the North, nullifying the Missouri
Compromise. In 1856, John Brown, a radical abolitionist started his raids in Kansas against
innocent southerners. Also in this year, Preston Brooks, a Senator from South Carolina rightly
beat Charles Sumner in the Senate hall for his radical voice against Slavery. In 1857, the
Supreme Court declared Blacks were not citizens and could therefore not sue their rightful
masters. In 1858, John Brown attacked a government arsenal to try to arm slaves against their
masters. In 1860, South Carolina finally seceded from the Union, as long deserved. With the
Clearly stupid Lincoln put in the White House, many other States also seceded from the Union,
clearly seeing the country was going downhill. It is time for the South to make their rise and
become the independent nation we deserve to be.
II.
Possible Solutions
After the Civil War started, there were eight slave states that had not seceded. These
states included Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, North Carolina Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky,
and Missouri. There were also four forts in the southern states that were not under the control of
the Confederacy. These forts were Fort Sumter, Fort Pickens, Key West, and Dry Tortugas. As
delegates from states in and around the south, it is now our job to make sure that several things
happen. First, we must convince more states to leave the union and rise with us against their
cruel justice. Next, it would be in our best interests to capture any remaining union strongholds
in the area of the South. One of the most crucial parts of this operation will be foreign allies:
Napoleon III of France, and Henry John Temple and Queen Victoria of Britain. These two
nations will be vital to our success, and establishing military alliances with them against the
Union will give us a strategic advantage over them, especially in terms of Naval Warfare. Lastly,
we must mobilize the troops, and do our best to turn the agrarian based economy into one that
can provide for our soldiers in terms of rations, arms, and medicine. Should we decide to trade
for these, or attempt to produce at home is up to your discretion, but a decision must be made for
our troops. When all of these are done, we must play the game of war and wipe the floor with the
United States of America, and assert our right as an independent nation!
III. Bloc Positions
We are the south. We want to secede and win the war. You are all different members of the state,
and it is your job to make sure this happens.
Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
30th Annual Conference
“Initium Novum”
IV. Guiding Questions\
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
How can we convince the remaining slave states to rebel?
What should our course of action be against the Union?
How will we apply for foreign help?
How much foreign help are we willing to ask for?
What is the best way to deal with the crippling union blockade?