Question

by the time abraham lincoln was sworn in as u.s. president, seven southern states had seceded from the union. these states attempted to form a new country called the confederate states of america, or the confederacy.
in march of 1861, the vice president of the confederacy, alexander stephens, gave a speech about why the south had seceded. read the passage. then answer the question below.

our new government is founded upon . . . the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery . . . is his natural and normal condition.
this, our new government, is the first . . . based upon this great physical, philosophical, and moral truth.

negro: an old term for people of african heritage
condition: status of place in society

according to stephens, what was the most important idea for his new country?
the belief that african american people were not as good as white people
the belief that slavery was unprofitable and the south should end it as soon as possible
the belief that the south should fight another war against mexico
the belief that the fugitive slave act should be repealed

Explanation:

The question asks for the core idea of the Confederacy as stated by Alexander Stephens. Stephens explicitly said the new government was founded on the idea that Black people (referred to by the outdated term "negro") are not equal to white people, and slavery is their natural societal status. The first option directly matches this claim, while the other options contradict his stated views.

Answer:

the belief that African American people were not as good as white people