The reconstruction period was a period in which people of the Southern regions were victims of discrimination and injustice. Several groups of the population were targeted and treated unfairly. Those groups included: The Freemen, Southern citizens, soldiers who fought for the confederacy, and political leaders. After the civil war ended the south became virtually non-existent politically and economically. The North treated the Southern citizens and the Freemen total unfairly. Their rights were taken advantage of, in addition, they were not provided any formal education nor training, there were no laws, and their towns were completely destroyed. They were not given white collar jobs, and were not allowed to enjoy the privileges that the North had. In 1865, the …show more content…
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. Blacks made up the overwhelming majority of southern Republican voters, forming a coalition with “carpetbaggers” and “scalawags”. A total of 265 African-American delegates were elected, more than 100 of whom had been born into slavery. In all, 16 African Americans served in the U.S. Congress during Reconstruction; more than 600 more were elected to the state legislatures, and hundreds more held local offices across the South. In conclusion, the reconstruction era brought about the 13th, 14th, and 15
Although slavery was declared over after the passing of the thirteenth amendment, African Americans were not being treated with the respect or equality they deserved. Socially, politically and economically, African American people were not being given equal opportunities as white people. They had certain laws directed at them, which held them back from being equal to their white peers. They also had certain requirements, making it difficult for many African Americans to participate in the opportunity to vote for government leaders. Although they were freed from slavery, there was still a long way to go for equality through America’s reconstruction plan.
Following the ending of the Civil War in 1865, America was in an era known as the Reconstruction. The Reconstruction lasted until 1877. Citizens were attempting to rebuild our nation following one of the deadliest war in American History. In this time, the Fourteenth Amendment and Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution were ratified. Although slaves were freed, African Americans still faced intense racial prejudice and discrimination.
The states that separated the North from the South served as a gateway for industrial revolution. Both the North and the South had many provincial differences, and perhaps nowhere was more uniquely defined than Chattanooga, TN. Chattanooga served as the “new beginning for men” of the South. The industrial growth of Chattanooga grew steadily.
The Reconstruction Era of American history was plagued by many problems. One of the most important problems being the recently released from slavery Freedmen. Freedmen were in a tricky situation in which they had just been released from their owner and had nowhere to go, but the Federal Government made many successful attempts to help them out. The Government helped alleviate all the problems Freedmen had from their finances to basic needs and rights, and in doing so, made the period of reconstruction more helpful than harmful for Freedmen. The events of reconstruction were helpful to freedmen as they were not only freed from slavery, they were given rights directly from the federal government.
Who killed Reconstruction: The North or South? Following the civil war, the south killed the reconstruction of the United States. (Reconstruction was putting the country back together after the Civil War) There are many reasons why, the south slowed down the reconstruction of the United States, the main reason was freedmen were not seen as equals to the white.
The first African American leaders in the South Came from the ranks of antebellum free blacks who were joint by norther blacks to support Reconstruction. Blanche K Bruce an ex slave established a school for freedmen and in 1874 he became Mississippi’s second black U.S. senator. African American speakers who were financed by the Republican Party, spread out into the plantation districts and recruited former slaves to take part in politics. In South Carolina, African Americans constituted a majority in the lower house of legislature in 1868. Over the reconstruction twenty African Americans served in state administrations as Governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, or lesser offices.
Following the end of the Civil War, the United States of America set its sights on restructuring the South. Idealistically, the North was to serve as a model and guide the redevelopment of southern society - purging it of slavery, introducing manufacturing, and creating new markets. Realistically, however, this was not the case. The Civil War was fought on the grounds of abolishing slavery, providing rights for blacks, and redeveloping the South’s economy, yet the years following its end saw very little change. Due to a lack of enforcement from the North and the federal government, the Reconstruction proved to be a dramatic failure.
Reconstruction is a time period that no American is proud of. This was a time of terrorism, racism, and getting our country back on its feet. Reconstruction started after World War ll. Abraham Lincoln was the president during reconstruction until he was assassinated, leaving Andrew Johnson as the leader of our country. Some may say that this time period was really no big deal, and it all worked out in the end.
But, when these officials were elected to Congress, they passed the “black codes” and thus the relations between the president and legislators became worst (Schriefer, Sivell and Arch R1). These so called “Black Codes” were “a series of laws to deprive blacks of their constitutional rights” that they were enacted mainly by Deep South legislatures. Black Codes differ from a state to another but they were stricter in the Deep South as they were sometimes irrationally austere. (Hazen 30) Furthermore, with the emergence of organizations such as the Red Shirts and the White League with the rise of the Conservative White Democrats’ power, efforts to prevent Black Americans from voting were escalating (Watts 247), even if the Fifteenth Amendment to the U.S constitution that gave the Blacks the right to vote had been ratified in 1870.
Reconstruction was a program used to help the south rebuild and join
The Reconstruction Era occurred in 1865, it was was a period after the Civil War in which America was focused on rebuilding the broken South. In 1867, the Radical reconstruction gave former slaves a voice in government. During this era, formers slaves gained a platform in the government, with some blacks as Congressmen. However, not everyone supported the idea of Reconstruction. Less than a decade after the Reconstruction period, a small group composed of democratic ex-confederate veterans, white farmers and white southerners sympathetic to white supremacy joined forces together to form the Ku Klux Klan.
Reconstruction is the time period after the Civil War, where the country attempted to improve the Union. There were many successes, but what also comes along with success is failure. During the reconstruction many failures were present; such as the lack of racial equality and blatant racism towards blacks, a failing economy in the South, and tense relations between the North and the South. This created a very intense and challenging period of time for the Union.
They had own rights to form their individual lives and participate in voting. Even Though the power was limited, in consequence, 6 blacks served in U.S congress during reconstruction era. This displays the significant power growth of blacks and great cooperation within the community. Along the amendments, Civil Rights Act of 1866 also
The reconstruction period was a failure because African Americans, mainly males, were not treated with equality although the constitution said that the they were free and had the right to vote, be educated and had the right to liberty, life and the pursuit to happiness. Organizations, like the KKK, were created to harm freed slaves and their families. Laws were created such as the Black Codes restricting former slaves from their rights. African Americans endured a lot of violence over the years. “In Grayson, Texas, a white man and two friends murdered three former slaves because the wanted to ‘ thin the niggers out and drive them to their hole’”.
Racism’s Impact on Reconstruction While the issue of slavery evidently contributed to the divide that resulted in the American Civil War, it is debated whether prevailing ideals of racism caused the failure of the era following the war known as Reconstruction. With the abolishment of slavery, many of the southern states had to reassemble the social, economic, and political systems instilled in their societies. The Reconstruction Era was originally led by a radical republican government that pushed to raise taxes, establish coalition governments, and deprive former confederates of superiority they might have once held. However, during this time common views were obtained that the South could recover independently and that African Americans