How Did The Draft Riots Occur In 1863

Enrollment began in September of 1862 (Allen 225). Thousands of black men enlisted. They would be commanded, led, and trained by all white officers. There were not to be any black officers commissioned and all African American soldiers were to be regarded as laborers. They would receive less pay than a white soldier. Instead of $13 plus clothing expenses, they would only receive $10 without clothing expenses (The American Civil War: A Multicultural Encyclopedia 55).

The federal government placed many restrictions and discriminatory actions on the black troops. At the beginning of the Civil War, African Americans were not allowed to serve in the U.S. military. By the summer of 1862 it was clear that additional troops were needed. To meet the need, Congress passed two bills that allowed the participation of black soldiers in the Union Army. The Government established segregated units called The Bureau of Colored Troops. The measure lacked popular support and the U.S. Army did not begin recruiting black soldiers until 1863.

The draft started on April 16, 1862 for the Confederate States during the Civil War. The Union then conducted their own draft on March 3, 1863. The Northern 1862 draft was an attempt to let states handle their own conscriptions, instead of the old volunteer militia. The next draft took place on September 16, 1940 for World War I and remained in effect continuously until 1973. The president, Woodrow Wilson, decided that “A draft was needed and nearly 3,000,000 soldiers were drafted following the Service Act of 1917.” (Understanding the U.S. Military Draft History 1). The reasoning behind President Wilson calling for the draft is because “Before the draft only 73,000 soldiers volunteered during the first 6 weeks of World War I” (Understanding the U.S. Military Draft History 1). Before July of 1973 “The draft was in effect continuously from 1940 to 1973” (Smith 1). This means that more than 10,000,000 men were drafted and sent off into battle throughout the past wars.

When a soldier's name was called he was to report to his local draft board. The local draft board was made up of many community members. He was to report as soon as possible so they could evaluate his status. The only way to avoid the draft was to either have mental issues, were married, had children, attending college, or they were needed at home to help support their families.

One of the ways in which blacks were awarded new opportunities was in the military. During the American Revolution, there were two sides of the war; the Loyalists who were loyal to King George III and the British government, and the Patriots who supported Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence. During this time, some slaves obtained freedom if they served in the military. Those who were not offered that opportunity were enticed to join the Loyalists in return for their freedom. Although, in the end, both sides helped African Americans find their freedom where they could (Holton, 57). During the war, African Americas were used in various ways, such as guides, spies, and soldiers, but they were only allowed to do the jobs that did not require much skill, as people did not think they were very skillful (Holton, 57). One of the first battles in which many African Americans fought in was the Battle of Bunker Hill. On this same day, Congress appointed a southern slaveholder as commander of the newly formed Continental Army. When George Washington arrived to the battle site, he was baffled at the disorganization of the New England soldiers and called for a total reform of the army. One of the things he did during this reform was the removal of slaves and free blacks from the Continental Army. This reform lasted an insignificant amount of time as Washington feared that the free blacks that were no longer in the Continental Army would enlist

37. When was the first draft instituted in the United States (month, day, and year)?

The New York City draft riots of 1863 were the cause of a particular feeling among blacks that were recently freed by the Emancipation Proclamation. Since, at the time, blacks were not considered citizens the lottery that was the draft itself did not include those that were not citizens. Btu since the blacks were free but not citizens then they were the spark of much hatred that was aroused by certain factors, particularly from the Irish and German immigrants. The press, fueled part of this hatred of the white community when they published ideas that were biased and led to more recognition on how the emancipation would be the end of the line for an immigrant making decent pay or wanting to stay home from the war.

The requirements to join the program would easily qualify most young men of different races. An enrollee had to be an American citizen man that is 18 to 25 years of age who was unemployed and willing to work a dollar a day for a span of six months (Hammond 9). Then, after six-month they could re-enlist, which gave them confidence that they could survive through the

Although many of the Negro soldiers had proved themselves as very reputable soldiers, the discrimination in pay, and in many other areas, had remained very widespread. According to the notable Militia Act of 1862, all soldiers of any African descent, were to only receive $10.00 a month, plus

The New York City Draft Riots of 1863 was the eruption of working class frustration. The draft that Congress put into place in 1863 called for even more men to fight in the Civil War. The War was about freeing black slaves, but blacks were exempt from the draft. This caused major resentment for the working class, white men of New York, who did not believe in abolition of black slaves in the first place.

America Should Bring Back the Draft: Rough Draft The U.S. signed the Selective Service Act into law in 1917, which required all men aged 21-35 to register for the draft and join the military if needed (later changed to 18-35). The draft, also called conscription, was used to quickly build the military in times of need. The first draft in the U.S. was used during WWI.

The President and Parliament gave Colonel Grayston a free hand to do what he needed to, but they wanted results. He was allowed to create a strict involuntary draft, all men between the ages of eighteen and thirty-two were required to serve in the armed forces and they and their families had to leave the Southern States of America. Keeping in mind, that at this time, Georgia was the only state in that union.

Throughout the United States there have been quite a number of riots in just about everywhere. Riots are typically known as noisy violent public discordance to protest against a new government policy or law or against another group. In a society such as America it is quite the norm for populations to take matters into their own hand and riot to stop what they believe is an injustice being done to them. Among the many riots that have occurred in the United States, the New York City Draft riots remains the largest riot to have occurred. It also remains the worst riot to ever occur in the city New York. (Cook 24) The Detroit race riots are significant because it is one of the largest riots experience by Detroit. The largest experienced by the United states in a three decade period following the East St. Louis riots in 1917. The significance of the stonewall riots is largely more obvious than the previous two. The stonewall riots were the first major uprising by the gays and lesbians in the United States. The word stonewall has become synonymous with the start of the lesbian and gay civil rights movement in the United States. (Carter 1) There is an abundance of research done on the New York City draft riots, the Detroit race riots and the stonewall riots, yet to my knowledge there has been no attempt to link those three major and effective civil rights events together.

Throughout the dynamic war, change also appeared through the images of African Americans. Although the Fugitive Slave laws were still in place, slaves who ran away and crossed Northern lines were considered free by the Union. Many slaves, viewing Lincoln and his country as their gateway to freedom, joined the union army. Most were employed to do labor such as laundry, carpentry and scouting, but many fought in battle. Beyond the typical dangers of war however, loomed the ever-present scent of discrimination. Early on, Each black solder received a seven dollar salary while white men received thirteen dollars a month. This was discontinued in 1864 when equal pay was granted to black solders. Although black regiments weren't used as often as white troupes due to racial discrimination, there were 80 black officers over the course of the war and several troupes, such as the Massachusetts 54th regiment, who distinguished themselves in battle. By the discontinuance of the war in 1863, 16 medals of honor had been awarded to African American Soldiers.

The “New York Draft Riots” and the “Great Hanging at Gainesville” both reflected the discontent with the war on both home fronts. The New York Draft Riots were a direct result of the Conscription Acts which enabled the first wartime draft of citizens in the United States. The act mandated that all men between the ages of 20 and 45 register to represent their country in war. Exemptions were granted for $300 or you could find a substitute to serve in your place. Prior to the draft, racial tensions were already high in New York due to poor economic conditions and due to the black workers replacing white workers during strikes. All races of people were competing against one another for jobs and housing, and the introduction of the Conscription Acts only exacerbated the problem. Only the very wealthy could afford to pay the $300 for the exemption; therefore, the poor working class became disgruntled. And on July 13, 1863, riots broke out in New York causing complete chaos in the city. The “Great Hanging at Gainesville” was a similar situation in the South. The people of Texas were fearful of the Unionists and their ideas. In fact, in October of 1862, 40 suspected Unionists were wrongfully accused of treason and hanged as a result. At this time, the tensions regarding the Civil War were running high; Cooke County community was split with some being natives of the Deep South who supported the Confederacy and others being natives of the Upper South and Midwest