The Fugitive Slave Act

The Fugitive Slave Act was the most controversial part of the Compromise of 1850 for a couple of reasons. It caused hostility in the North because it still allowed slavery in the North because under this law, federal magistrates had to determine the status whether a black person was a fugitive slave and had to return the slave back to the South. Because of this, the North was helping to keep slavery legal ,even though some were abolitionists and were against slavery, because the people had no choice since they could be sent to jail for helping fugitive slaves.

The south liked this law because it kept slavery going. It also could be seen as constitutional, even though I dont think it was, because in Article 4, Section 2 of the Constitution, it says that if someone escapes from one state, they shouldn't be discharged from their job, or whatever they escaped from, but should be returned. 

I think this law went against the states' rights of the North because the North was against slavery, but they were forced to abide by it because of the law and had no other choice, unless they wanted to go to prison. It seems like the government was trying to deal with two separate countries because the North and the South had such different values, beliefs, and opinions, and there wasn't any way to make them both happy.