African Americans played a major role in the causes and effects of the Civil War. Between 1861 and 1870, African American slaves went from being the reason why the war started to changing the nation to allow more rights for blacks. Before the war, African Americans were treated horribly whether they were free or enslaved. There were many occurrences that diminished the rights of blacks. Due to the fact that African American slaves were running away from their owners to the North, the Fugitive Slave Act was established in the Compromise of 1850. It forced the North to help capture runaway slaves, but much of the North did not adhere to it. The Dred Scott v. Sanford decision also affected black slaves negatively. It ruled that Congress could …show more content…
However, following the events that took place at the Battle of Antietam, President Lincoln was able to pass the Emancipation Proclamation, which stated that all slaves in a rebellious state would be considered free. This would not go into effect until after the war, but it allowed African Americans to join the Union Army. This was a great step forward for black soldiers, but Lincoln still received backlash for his decision. Lincoln wrote to those who opposed his decision that he wished for all men, regardless of race, to be free and that why should African Americans do anything for them if they will do nothing for them in return (Document C)? This did not please Lincoln’s intended audience for this letter, which were those who were against the Proclamation, because it had truth in saying that African Americans should also be given the promise of freedom. This ushered a shift in the Union’s purpose for fighting the war. Initially, they were fighting to preserve the Union, but now they were also fighting for the end of the practice and expansion of slavery. The Republican Party described their support for this change of motives, stating that they endorsed the proposed amendment that prohibited the use of slavery (the 13th Amendment) and granted protection of the laws to all men, black or white (Document D). Their purpose was to establish their approval for the abolition of slavery and to officially …show more content…
Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House and the Civil War was over, African Americans still had to fight for complete equality. President Johnson, Lincoln’s successor, did not push for African American rights after the war and tried to bring the US to the same position that they were in before the war. Congress opposed him, however, creating the 14th Amendment, which granted African Americans full citizenship. This was an essential step for blacks in order to fully achieve equal rights. Blacks then argued that since they were now citizens, they should be given the right to vote as well. A proceeding from the Convention of the Colored People of Virginia stated that for all men to have a say in their rights, they should tear down the restriction on the color of their skin for voting (Document H). Their purpose in saying this was to voice the thoughts that many blacks had in order to encourage them to fight for it. Their efforts were not done in vain as the 15th Amendment was passed, which destroyed the suffrage restraint against race. Although this act did not apply to black women, it was a movement in the right direction nonetheless. African Americans were also able to further advance their positions in society by obtaining government positions and participating in state constitutional conventions. Between 1867 and 1868, blacks took part in the state conventions of many Southern states, even representing 61% of South Carolina’s state
Most exasperating to Radical Republicans was “black codes”; all seven states took steps to ensure a landless, dependent black labor force. Johnson’s plan assured the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment- neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist in the United States- but the codes infringed strictly on the freedmen’s behavior. Racial segregation in public places, racial intermarriage, jury service by black and court testimony by black against whites were all popular codes. These black codes left freedmen no longer slaves but not totally liberated either. In December 1865, Congressed refused to seat delegates of ex-Confederate states.
The 14th Amendment and the 15th Amendment were soon to follow, which protected former slaves under the law and granted African Americans the right to vote. With the Freedmen’s Bureau and the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the government was also able to support freed African Americans in finding new jobs, pursuing educations, and more in order to help them succeed.
The Union’s approach to ending the Civil War and restoring the country was ultimately quite bold. Along with this, the Union handled restoration, mainly involving the issue of slavery, step by step until stability could exist again. The Union's main concerns were preventing the Confederacy from gaining any political power, aid from abroad, or strong military strength. By displaying complete power and determination over these issues, the ability to put an end to the rebellion would be much easier.
Abraham Lincoln, who is widely known as an advocator against slavery, was, in the beginning, not strongly one way or another. He said, that, “My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not to save or destroy slavery” (Doc. 10). His opinion later changed when he got a visit from Fredrick Douglas and he because a pro-abolitionist. After the civil war ended, all freed men were supposed to be given 40 acres of land, taken from the chief rebels but things got complicated, and most rebels were forgiven, and given their land back (Doc. 2). African Americans were not the only ones fighting for their equality.
The United States Constitution was established to provide basic rights and a government for the people. Much blood was shed, along with many casualties in the American Revolution to insure Americans could implement the policies and powers of the Constitution. In the election of 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States; however, his political views on slavery were not welcomed in the South. Consequently, Lincoln’s election sparked panic for the South knowing that he would undermine slavery. In order to insure that slavery continued, Southern states attempted to make two Constitutional provisions; consequently, they were denied.
So the African Americans gained another right to gain equality and move towards the whites in power (Buescher). The nation was turning into an equal nation with the same amount of power as the whites. According to the article “Equality in African-American Politics,” “While the Declaration of Independence proclaimed equality, the Constitution did not, and it was not until after the Civil War and the adoption of the Fifteenth Amendment that the Constitution was amended to formally commit the nation to equality” (Equality in African-American Politics). In other words, the nation was shifting from a white dominated society to an equal society where the whites were not as dominant anymore and the African Americans gained rights. The 15th amendment that was passed by Grant helped gain equality in power, politics, and identification between
What Caused the Civil War? Slavery helped build the United States, but it did help disjoin it as well. The Civil War costed over 600,000 lives who were all fighting over one question. Should slavery exist or be abolished?
Before the American Civil War happened close to four million African-Americans were slaves. At the turn of the century the Naturalization Act of 1970 allowed only white men to vote. After the Civil War the thirteenth (1865), fourteenth (1868) and fifteenth (1870) amendments were passed, allowing African-American males to vote and have citizenship, which also led to ending slavery. Even after the ending of slavery, there were still some white men who tried to keep white supremacy alive thereby dehumanizing and alienating African-Americans from the mainstream of people. Even after African-Americans were given all their rights, there were still problems with racial segregation.
The two out four questions that I choose are to 1.) Discuss the causes of the civil war. Cite as many facts as possible to back up your analysis. And answer 2.) If the enduring vision of America is embodied in the Declaration of Independence's statements about equality and universal rights to justice, liberty, and self-fulfillment, how much progress toward those ideals had blacks and women made by 1877?
‘‘Brown tried to get Douglass to join him countless times in his physical escapades but Douglass refused. (Wu page 55) Slavery was eventually abolished in 1865. Douglass then started campaigning for blacks to have the right to vote. After years of devoting his life to antislavery he then started devoting it towards equality between blacks and whites. The 15th amendment was passed in 1870 which gave blacks the right to vote.
As the war began to come to an end, confederates came to the realization that they were outnumbered by many and the union was not giving up. “The 13th amendment , which formally abolished slavery in the United States, passed the senate on April 8, 1864, and the house on January 31, 1865,” (Records Administration, 2005). Even though the amendment did not get passed by the house until a year after the senate did, slavery still became illegal and was looked at as inhumane for most. This was a great ending for the union, and the president since this amendment, along with the 14th and 15th, greatly expanded civil rights of
The right to vote in the United States is a fundamental right for all of the citizens. However, for African American citizens, that fundamental right was being taken away from them, despite previous constitutional amendments. Over the course of five months, African Americans fought peacefully for their right to vote. By marching from Selma to Montgomery, African Americans pathed the way to the establishment of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which then allowed them to exercise their voting rights.
African Americans fought in the Civil War on the Union and Confederate side. Most of the slaves were free and run away slaves. The emancipation proclamation helped the slaves be free and get their citizenship. Black soldiers did not receive equal or treatment white soldiers made more money. In June 1864 Congress granted retroactive equal pay meaning blacks and whites made the same pay.
Further more, in 1865 President Johnson excluded African Americans from southern politics and allowed state legislatures to pass restrictive “black codes” regulating the lives of the freed men and women. This caused an increase mobilization within the black community, with meetings, parades, and petitions calling for legal and political rights, including the all-important right to vote. In 1867 during the Radical Reconstruction, Congress granted African American men the status and rights of citizenship, including the right to vote, as guaranteed by the 14th and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
When Cultures Meet: Case studies in the history of relations between peoples of different cultures: Racial Discrimination in the US in the 1960’s Introduction Culture is defined in many different ways, which can lead to alternative theories, at the beginning of the twentieth century anthologist defined it as the “the way of the people or what an individual needed to know to survive in a society or what can be learnt by an individual and passed down in society. Many social scientist have try to narrow it down but this leads to debates about what should be included (Hall, et al., 2003). Culture is not as much about understanding other culture as much as shedding a light on your own culture, which helps you understand other culture then too. There