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The reconstruction era success and failures
Reconstruction era informative essay
Reconstruction era informative essay
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By the end of the reconstruction era the ‘American Identity’ has continued to change for many years. In the 1900’s the ‘American Identity’ was identified as a hard-working upper class white individual. These characteristics were considered the identity for America because during this era segregation was prominent, there was an influx of immigration from Europe, and the increase of education. All of these events and how the people reacted towards them influenced how this identity was molded and created. After this time period, people thought that segregation would decline, but in reality, the racial tensions increased. This was shown in multiple situations, including in the workforce. At the time children and woman were put to work and so were …show more content…
African Americans because industrialization was expanding. This caused new jobs to be created, but the downside of it was that owners would rather hire others than the African Americans and if they were hired they would be discriminated against. This caused the African Americans to be involved in tenant farming, which allowed them to work, but they would always be in debt to the landowner. The reason why they would be in debt to them was because they would rent a portion of the plantation from the landowner, but they would have to buy tools from them and the plantation owner would charge a portion they are growing and then sell back to them. So no matter what the African Americans did the landowner would always be getting money in their pockets while they were getting more in debt. Another situation was shown during the elections and the people decided to put new rules to determine who was able to vote.
One of the rules included the literacy test and the grandfather clause. Since many African Americans didn’t have an education, many of them were illiterate. The literacy test takes advantage of this, since the test was given to voters to determine if they were literate, if they weren’t then they were prohibited to vote. Thus, this test mainly affected the African American communities where they weren’t able to vote. The grandfather clause was a loophole for white individuals that weren’t able to pass the literacy test. This clause states that if the father or the grandfather of an individual was able to vote in a certain time period than the individual is eligible to vote. Each of these situations demonstrates the people in the 1900s considered ‘American Identity’ to be white individuals by continuing to discriminate at those who weren’t …show more content…
white. The influx of immigration from Europe continued to demonstrate what was considered the American identity which is shown in the article of Ethnicity and Assimilation the immigrants who migrated to Chicago.
The immigrants would try to adapt by celebrating American celebrations however, they would not give up their loyalty towards their homeland. The immigrants would celebrate American holidays to show their patriotism towards the country, but if it involved discarding traditions from their homeland, they would refuse to show their patriotic side (Litwicki, 17). Many would think that immigrants would show their patriotic side because they wanted to convey their appreciation this country, but also their homeland. Most immigrants would celebrate the holidays separately because they would incorporate their own story allowing themselves to become not Americans but ethnic Americans. This conveys how in order to classify as an American, immigrants would need to assimilate into American
culture. Although segregation and immigration contributed to the ‘American Identity’, education played a role in forming the identity. Booker T. Washington was the father of Washington Model of Education, he taught people basic math skills, literacy, manual labor, and farming. He believed that if African Americans showed they are willing to put in effort in learning these skills and use them in the workforce then the white supremacists would be more accepting towards them. Booker also believed this would earn trust towards them and it would be a great opportunity for African Americans in the work field. Booker’s speech mentioned that it would also be an opportunity to end the violence against them. This showed how hard workers were involved in the identity. Although the ‘American Identity’ was considered to be hard working white individuals, the characteristics have changed throughout the time. People need to assimilate to American culture to show their patriotism and prove themselves by willing to work hard and experience hardships. All of the events that happened and the situations contributed the identity changing throughout the time period.
"To prohibit a great people from making all that they can of every part of their own produce advantageous to themselves, is a manifest violation of the most sacred rights of mankind." These views of Adam Smith were very much supported throughout the mid-18th century. Throughout this time, many new developments were made regarding American colonists view's of their sense of identity and unity as Americans. Due to an over controlling British government and a need for individuality as a country, colonists became Americans through their great fight to highly develop their sense of identity and unity as Americans.
Society was changing in the late 1800’s. Women and children entered the work field and competition was very high to get jobs. Even though more women worked during this time than ever before companies still preferred males for most jobs of authority or higher pay. It was impossible for women and children to make anywhere near as much as males. Also, African Americans faced struggles while searching for jobs. This ethnicity was often stuck in unskilled labor tasks and women of this race had extremely limited job options, commonly domestic servants and laundresses. African Americans living in the north did indeed gain better social and economic positions compared to living in the south. The main discriminating factor during this time was white vs. blue collar jobs. White collar jobs would consist of higher class citizens who would earn higher pay and often had more education. In comparison blue collar jobs could be obtained by almos...
Blacks were driven out of skilled trades and were excluded from many factories. Racist’s whites used high rents and there was enormous pressure to exclude blacks from areas inhabited by whites.... ... middle of paper ... ...
The book talks about how there was segregation just about everywhere you looked. In the 1930's the white people had their own restrooms along with their own water fountains and the lacks had their own school and blacks usually did not go to school. They were too busy working on the farm to go to school. The schools only had one room for all of the grades. The children usually walked to school in those days,because they didn't have school buses. They also had to bring their own lunch to school in lunch pails. Today children ride school buses to school. It would kill us if we had to walk to school.We are not use to that much exercise. Also today they serve us lunch in the cafeterias. Although it it is not that good at least they try. They have to work with the limited stuff the school board allows them to buy. Speaking of buses, the blacks would have to sit in the back of the bus and the whites sat in the front. Although,thanks to Rosa Parks, who on day refused to sit in the back of the bus, now blacks can sit wherever they want to sit. Today whites use the same restrooms and water fountains as blacks do. Blacks and whites also attend the same schools. Today schools have different classrooms for every grade.
In 20th century America, after the Second World War, the nation emerged as a dominant figure in the dynamics of the world. The American people began to develop a certain identity that became known to all around the world. People craved to experience the American identity and have a chance at reaching the American dream. The American dream embodied the American ideals of freedom, social mobility, and ability to succeed and live a happy life. Ultimately through Montana 1948, by Larry Watson, the American identity is explored through the many facets of the emerging 20th century American idea: an American dream.
Despite the 14th and 15th constitutional amendments that guarantee citizenship and voting right regardless of race and religion, southern states, in practice, denied African Americans the right to vote by setting up literacy tests and charging a poll tax that was designed only to disqualify them as voters. In 1955, African Americans still had significantly less political power than their white counterparts. As a result, they were powerless to prevent the white from segregating all aspects of their lives and could not stop racial discrimination in public accommodations, education, and economic opportunities. Following the 1954 Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown vs. Board of Education that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, it remained a hot issue in 1955. That year, however, it was the murder of the fourteen-year-old Emmett Louis Till that directed the nation’s attention to the racial discrimination in America.
Alan Trachtenberg, professor of American studies at Yale and author of The Incorporation of America, argues that the system of incorporation unhinged the idea of national identity that all American’s had previously shared. As a result, incorporation became the catalyst for the great debate about what it meant to actually be American, and who was capable of labeling themselves as such. Throughout his work Trachtenberg consistently tackles the ideas of cultural identity and how those ideas struggled against one another to be the supreme definition of Americanism. This work not only brings to life the issue of identity, but it attempts to synthesize various scholarly works into a cohesive work on the Gilded Age. It demonstrates that concepts developed during the incorporation of the time period have formed the basis for the American cultural, economic, and political superstructure.
understand is that the systems put in place in that era still effect black Americans, and racial issues were
These laws created inequality in the educational institution by conducting the black schools and white schools separately; whites used different textbooks than blacks and they could not be interchanged, and promoting equality for the races was considered a misdemeanor offense resulting in fines or prison. Because of these institutions, we see that there is an American Ethnic Hierarchy. This is divided into a three tier system: first tier is the Euro-American Protestants, the second tier consists of Euro-American Catholics and Jews of various national origins and many Asians, and the bottom tier is made up of African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and some Asian Americans.... ... middle of paper ...
Even though slavery was abolished, many colored people had very low-paying jobs. In fact, “Like the Youngers, 64% of black women and 34% of black men in the city worked as domestic servants” (Gordon 123). This exclaims how the white class has superior over colored people because of there disagreements with past events. Since there was a vast amount of African-Americans in this area it caused increasing acts of violence because of the huge unemployment rate, Along with the mixture of races if certain parts which many white’s did not agree
...outcast group of that set range attempt to conform themselves. The meaning of who is an American continues to change gradually over time, embracing different cultures and races into that definition, but the task is nowhere near completion as long as the hyphenated racial classifications and double consciousness still exist.
Mississippi, the court declared that the plan was not unconstitutional because it required all voters to be literate not just blacks. There was no literal proof to prove the true intentions of the plan. The plan got the job done. According to America: Its History and Economy Volume 2. From 1877 to the Modern Period, “southern black voter registration decreased by 62%.” But the plan worked too well, and since it required all the voters to be literate; the plan also decreased the white vote in the southern states due to the large number of poor and illiterate white people. In order to fix this mild set back, Louisiana came up with the solution to instill a Grandfather Clause. The Grandfather Clause stated that illiterate people were allowed to vote if their grandfather or father had been allowed to vote before January 1, 1866. Obviously this only provided a solution for bringing the white vote up seeing as no blacks were registered to vote in Louisiana in 1866. Several states adapted similar clauses. The Grandfather clause was brought to the Supreme Court in the case of Guinn v. U.S. The Supreme Court ruled the clauses unconstitutional because it violated the 15th amendment. On paper, these clauses seemed harmless, but this was an obvious act of disenfranchisement towards black people. To further the disenfranchisement of black people. “African American voters were usually unaware that their votes were not counted under such conditions. "Ballot box stuffing" was yet another deceptive tactic used to disenfranchise African Americans. This practice of "counting out" the intended votes by African Americans for an opposing candidate or using phony ballots against the candidate supported by a African American majority were ways of "stealing" the
Throughout Canada’s relatively short existence we have created quite a reputation for ourselves. Our great nation is known for many things , and I am proud to say that most are positive. Does Canada have a strong national identity? Anyone can see the answer is yes. Just take a look at the facts. For example, we are renowned for our peacekeepers and no other country is considered more peaceful. Without a doubt this is the type of identity we should work to keep.
In 1965 congress had passed Civil Rights law for all citizens to be able to vote. Before, African American and white women did not have the same equal rights to vote as white men did. The white males allowed a small number of free African Americans to go register and vote. For a African American to vote they were required to be a free citizen and not a runaway slave. In 1867 congress made it possible for African Americans to vote. The new constitutions guarantee black suffrage and congress tried to protect the African Americans right to vote by putting the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendment. When congress passed the Civil Rights law African American still suffered from voting because congress made it unaffordable for poor people to vote. A
During this time, the idea of segregation was a very controversial topic among the c...