peculiar institution

American  

noun

1. Black slavery in the southern U.S. before the Civil War.

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Etymology

Origin of peculiar institution

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45

Example Sentences

And this is before we consider America’s “peculiar institution”: slavery.

From Salon

The sport may be our most peculiar institution, and if you don’t agree, please, try explaining our fall Saturday spectacle to anyone outside our borders as I have.

From Los Angeles Times

What was the war about, and what was the role of slavery, the most peculiar institution in all American history?

From Salon

That second reason is the "peculiar institution."

From Salon

I’m partial, too, to Sara Porkalob in her dazzling portrayal of South Carolina’s Edward Rutledge as the embodiment of Southern devotion to slavery and a refusal to go along with the revolution unless Jefferson’s document strikes all mention of the “peculiar institution.”

From Washington Post