During the time after the civil war, there was a time commonly referred to as “reconstruction”. During this time states were being readmitted to the union and laws were being passed to give rights to “freed people”. Although many efforts were made, reconstruction inevitably failed to achieve its goal of equalizing freed people and whites. One shortcoming of reconstruction was the lack of political equality for the freedmen. An example of this is the literacy test that freed people had to complete to vote. On February 3, 1870, the 15th Amendment was ratified. This Amendment gives the right to vote to freedmen. This was a huge jump forward in the process of setting whites and blacks equal. However, racist state governments found ways to limit …show more content…
These groups’ sole intention was to terrorize the freed people and eliminate any rights they may be given. These groups were so impactful because they threatened and frequently killed blacks who were running for or were in Congress or Senate and involved in the government as well as any man or politician who publicly supported the freed people. This took the percentage of blacks in government in 1870 from 26 percent in the South down to zero in a matter of years and also decreased almost all public support and or encouragement for freed people to be involved in any form of government. This proves reconstruction to be an undeniable failure because Another way reconstruction was unsuccessful was the inequality in society. Most whites were racists and prejudiced, and although there were laws in place to maintain blacks' rights, something called black codes was made to limit what blacks could and couldn't do. Some examples of the black codes found in Louisiana seen in Document G include “No negro or freedmen shall be allowed within the limits of the town without special permission from his employers.” Additionally “No negro or freedmen shall be permitted to rent or keep a
The governments established under Congressional Reconstruction made notable and lasting achievements. One positive outcome that resulted was the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which extended citizenship to African Americans and listed certain rights of all citizens such as the right to own property, bring lawsuits, and testify in court. Another major outcome was the Fifteenth Amendment, which prohibited the states from denying the right to vote because of a person’s race or because a person had been a slave. This finally granted African Americans the right to vote and marked an important change in the history of our country. A negative outcome resulted politically from congressional Reconstruction. Many of the federal laws concerning reconstruction led to the strengthening of the federal government at the expense of the states. These new laws often placed significant restrictions on state actions on the ground that the rights of national citizenship took precedence over the powers of state governments leading to an increase in sectional bitterness, an intensification of the racial issue, and the development of one-party politics in the South. Stemming from this “infringement” of states’ rights and intensified by the election of 1868 was another negative outcome. Fierce activities were stirred up by groups such as the KKK- violence became prominent, and terrorists and mobs attacked many people- mostly Republicans and blacks.
It remained a tough life for the ex-slaves. The political influence of blacks was significantly enhanced by the revolutionary amendments passed in the 1860s. The thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth amendments expanded black rights to an unprecedented extent, affording them rights equal to those of an average white man. The 1868 fourteenth amendment, giving “all persons born or naturalized” in the Union national citizenship, meant blacks should be protected equally by law and stand on a jury; the 15th amendment, giving them the vote, naturally followed in 1870. However, such measures were only held up by the Reconstruction Governments of the time, and it was clear that the states’ white citizens mostly disagreed with the schemes, responding to them with a barrage of cruelty and violence.
Reconstruction made the nation as a whole feel ‘reunited’, but it was viewed as a failure and waste immediately after its completion (Boyer, 471). It laid the groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement by passing the 13, 14, and 15th amendments, even though they would not be implemented to protect minority rights for nearly a hundred years. Reconstruction also established a policy of treating African-Americans as second-class citizens. The nation was taught that it was alright to treat blacks as inferior people because the government would not even guarantee them the right to vote in state elections. However, Reconstruction did pave the way for share-cropping and the factory system, which would lead to an economic boom as American expanded. Reconstruction threw America into upheaval, and by 1875 the North had tired of the various plans and politics, and longed to end Congress’s plan (Boyer, 467).
In 1867 a 2/3 Republican Congress passes the Reconstruction Acts, which abolishes all governments, and in the elections, Republicans have the advantage thanks to black voters. In Tennessee, a radical Republican by the name of William G. Brownlow takes over, and he is a rather savage man. He is very radical and believes that those who fought for the Confederacy are traders, and he shows no mercy on returning rebel soldiers. His paper publishes the names of the soldiers, targeting them for revenge. He ratifies the 14th amendment, and while giving rights to freed slaves to vote, it also stripped former rebel soldiers of voting rights. These drastic changes of course anger many southern trying to hold on to the old ways, and in particular, it angers
After the results of the American Civil War, Abraham Lincoln wished to quickly rebuild the country by reintroducing the Confederation back into the country and progressing the nation as a whole. He had a plan to build back state governments that were lost to the Confederacy as long as a fraction of the state recognized the end of slavery and pledged their allegiance to America. However, this plan would not go into effect due to his assassination on April 14, 1865. Lincoln paved the way for Reconstruction, the movement that aimed to allow African Americans to gain a foothold in society, especially as a result of the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order that outlawed slavery.
After the conclusion of the Civil War that ended in 1865, slavery was abolished and of course with the victory from the Union, America was now a nation again. Although America was together as one, still, the north and the south had different views of approaching the way of life regarding to “ex-slaves”. During the post war, it lead America to a time called the Reconstruction era(1863-1877) where mainly the southern states of America learned to refigure out their new lifestyles without owning slaves. As you can imagine after losing a war, the former Confederates faced many problems during the aftermath of the battles. Families were lost and destroyed, the southern lands were a state of chaos due to the massive destruction of the fighting, emancipation of slaves occurred, money was lost due to their property being destroyed, and of course,
Abraham Lincoln ran against Stephan Douglas for senator. They debated about slavery, both having different views on slavery. Lincoln argued against the spread of slavery while Douglas debated that each territory should have the right to decide whether each state should become free or slaved. Lincoln lost the election, but gained a national reputation that won him the Republican nomination for President in 1860. President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation that promises freedom for the slaves. Lincoln wanted to reconstruct the country, to rebuild, trust and make peace. While planning of the Reconstruction, one of America’s bloodiest wars was taking place, the Civil War, between the North and the South of the United States. The Northerners wanted to limit the spread of slavery and the
The Reconstruction was an eight-year effort to fix the South after the Civil War left it destroyed. Now that the Civil War ended, and the North & South were united once again, they were the ones responsible for fixing the economic, political, and social damage. Though the Reconstruction was made to unite all Americans and support equality, the Reconstruction ended up tearing America apart. This support soon came to an end in the mid-1870s with the question being; How much responsibility does the South have for the end of southern support? The KKK, political violence, and voting fraud all caused tension and violence that eventually brought the Reconstruction to an end.
From 1865 to 1877, Americans felt it was time for politics, the economy and society to change, which produced an era of reconstruction. In some areas Reconstruction is seen as a success and in other areas it's seen as a failure. The areas of success in this period were with the Radical Republicans and South Reconstruction. The "Union victory created a golden opportunity [for Radicals] to institutionalize the principle of equal rights for all, refardless of race" (Foner 570). The start of the Radical Reconstruction began with Congress giving black men the right to vote, which was a great success towards giving every citizen equal rights. Then the adoption of the fourteenth and fifteenth ammendment were also a huge step towards equal rights proposed
After four hard-fought years of the deadliest war on American soil, the Union, led by President Abraham Lincoln, defeated the Confederacy, led by President-elect Jefferson Davis. The victory of the Union resolved the matter regarding the freedom of slaves, but along came the concern of the future status of four million newly freed slaves. The United States was divided, and in response, Congress passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867. Even with the best efforts put into the Reconstruction Act of 1867, it ultimately failed in its quest and ended ten years after in 1877. What remained was the issue regarding the status of African Americans and the South’s economy.
After four hard-fought years of the deadliest war on American soil, the Union, led by President Abraham Lincoln, defeated the Confederacy, led by president-elect Jefferson Davis. The victory of the Union resolved the matter regarding the freedom of slaves, but along came the concern of the future status of four million newly freed slaves. The United States was divided, and in response, Congress passed the Reconstruction Act of 1867. Even with the best efforts put into the Reconstruction Act of 1867, it ultimately failed in its quest and ended ten years after in 1877. What remained was the issue regarding the status of African Americans and the South’s economy.
“The slave went free; stood a brief moment in the sun; then moved back again toward slavery” (Dubois 505). In other words, slavery was abolished but racism was still around. Interestingly, the Declaration of Independence’s one-hundredths anniversary was celebrating freedom, but yet black Americans were being treated unfairly and didn’t have certain rights. The election of 1876 almost caused another Civil War in the South. More rights were given to the black Americans and the dream of Reconstruction seemed to be working until the election of 1876, where the new president actually made it so that it almost guaranteed all-white governments would reclaim power in the South (Roden 505). The South was at fault for the end of Reconstruction due to
The Reconstruction era brought about major changes in race and legislative and social changes designed to address serious injustices that were against many African Americans. Because the 13th Amendment marks a pivotal moment in the abolition of slavery around April 1864, many African Americans and Formerly Enslaved individuals were provided freedom during its abolition. Lastly, a federal mandate superseded state laws regarding slavery and made it illegal nationwide, changing the gruesome working conditions and socioeconomic changes. Secondly, the 14th Amendment was ratified during this era. This amendment allowed extended citizenship to the persons born and naturalized in the US regardless of race.
From the beginning of the Reconstruction era to the late 1960s, the expansion of voting rights in the United States was marked by advances and obstacles. While the Reconstruction Amendments expanded suffrage, many African Americans still endured discriminatory practices such as literacy tests, poll taxes, and intimidation tactics such as threats or beatings in order to limit any voice or impact in the voting practice. Furthermore, Jim Crow laws and practices during the late 19th century involving racial segregation highlighted various tactics to suppress African Americans from voting. Additionally, the relentless efforts of activists and suffragists, resulting in the ratification of the 19th Amendment, paved the way for many legislative reforms
The period of Reconstruction began immediately after the Civil War and ended in 1877. This era is known for the advancements made in favor of racial equality. These improvements included the fourteenth amendment, "this law guaranteed that federal and state laws would apply equally and unequivocally to both African Americans and whites" (civil-war.ws), and the fifteenth amendment, which granted freedmen to vote. With the end of Reconstruction in 1877, the Republican Party lost control of the southern governments and the Democratic Party took over. This shift in power was supposed to mark the beginning of the "New South" in which the virtues of thrift, industry, and progress would become the model characteristics of the South. Confederates at the time saw Reconstruction as both benefiting and hurting them. They did not want northern culture to be pressured on to there society but they greatly appreciated the help in rebuilding their homes and cities in hope of a better future. Their plans and ideas for the better south looked as if to be perfect at the time but as the government would soon find out they had many flaws. The changes in the South from 1877-1900 reflected traditional attitudes and policies, such as power in the hands of a conservative oligarchy, the maintaining of agriculture over industry as the primary source of economics, and the return of white supremacy, rather than the vision of the New South.