Willis Rodeshia Willis HIST1302.DCBG.16SP March 14, 2016 Essay 1 1 What accounts for the failure or success of Reconstruction to bring about social equality to the freedman? There are many things that account for the failure of Reconstruction to bring about social equality to the freedman. Examples are the Freedmen’s Bureau, the Civil Rights Act, and Voting Rights Act. 2 In 1865, President Abraham Lincoln signed a bill creating the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands. This agency is better known as the Freedmen’s Bureau. Its purpose was to oversee the hard transition of African Americans from slavery to freedom. 3 The Freedmen’s Bureau was headed by Union General Oliver O. Howard for the whole seven years of it existed. Many things hurt the bureau’s work. 2 White Southerners were very hostile to the Northern bureau members, and even more so to the freed slaves. Terror organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan or KKK targeted both blacks and whites and intimidated those trying to help them. The bureau lacked the necessary funds and personnel to carry out its programs, and the lenient policies of President …show more content…
The Act granted citizenship and the same rights enjoyed by white citizens to all males in the United States "without distinction of race or color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary servitude." 6 The activities of groups such as the Ku Klux Klan or KKK undermined the act. It failed to immediately secure the civil rights of African Americans. Since 1866 it has been illegal in the U.S. to discriminate in jobs and housing because of race. However, federal penalties were not provided for, so that remedies were left to the individuals involved. Because those being discriminated against had limited access to legal help, this left many victims of discrimination without hope. This act prohibited employment discrimination based on race and color. Sadly that didn’t stop people from
Freedmen’s Bureau was an agency established as part of the U.S. War Department by an act of Congress in March 1865. The full title of the agency was Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands. Its principal aim was to provide assistance to the newly emancipated blacks of the South after the American Civil War. Originally created for one year, the bureau was continued in 1866 by Congress overriding the veto of President Andrew Johnson and was thereafter repeatedly extended. The bureau was headed by a commissioner, Gen. Oliver Otis Howard, who was assisted by one assistant commissioner for each Southern state.
After the Civil War, Congress and the president set up a new government agency to help former freedmen. This new government agency was called by the name of the Freedmen’s Bureau. The Freedmen 's Bureau also was an agency to help former slaves adjust to freedom after the 13th Amendment ended slavery. Their purpose for running this agency was to give out clothes, foods, and medicines, which reduced the death rate of many African Americans. They also did many other things like create schools for African Americans, like Atlanta University,
The Freedman's bureau was a government agency that helped in the aid of freed slaves in the south. The agency, formed by Abraham Lincoln helped distribute food, clothing and shelter. It also opened schools for former slaves. Although this helped a lot of people, Andrew Johnson wasn't interested in former slaves. In fact, he was even a previous slave owner himself.
From this website I gained information on a huge purpose of the Freedmen’s Bureau which was to help the several blacks as well as whites to make a rapid transition from slavery to a time period where there is nothing but freedom. The bureau was helped ran by the War Department. The Bureau had a very strong military force behind it backing it up. The military force had very big responsibilities, which included stopping problems that were happening due to racial equality. Their main job was to enforce. The components of the Bureau lacked strong enforcement. So, therefore it soon began to fall apart years
2) Freedman’s Bureau: Congress created this in March of 1865 in order to provide help for thousands of poor black and white southerners uprooted by the fighting. They were educated in Freedman Schools, housed, and fed. “Plenty to eat, nothing to do” (pg. 404)
The major Aims of the Freedmen’s Bureau were to assist the South in distributing food and supplies, medical care, building schools mostly for the African Americans, administer justice, and managing the confiscated lands. Many schools were built and several colleges training African
In a determination to help ex-slaves in 1865, the Legislative body established the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, furthermore known as the Freedmen's Bureau. It provided medical care, assisted with resettlement, food, and it helped establish learning institutes. In excess of one-thousand learning institutes were built, teaching institutions were created for teacher’s training, and many African-American colleges were
The Freedmen Bureau was important for African Americans during Reconstruction because established hospitals to aid injured in the war, It was extended to give freedmen food, clothing, and shelter until they found jobs and their children were given opportunities to go to school.
Lastly, discrimination was a major threat to the safety of African American citizens. The government could have more strictly enforced laws of equality and distributed harsher consequences to those disregarding such
Even thought it had a lot of fails the reconstruction did do somethings that caused it to have a small success. The reconstruction caused the passing of three amendments. One was the 13th amendment which caused the ended to slavery. The next is the 14th amendment.This amendment granted citizenship to people once enslaved.The last one was 15th and it given the right to vote to all men. This also caused the creation of the first american welfare agency called the freemen's bureau. The bureau gave food and clothing to former slaves. And tried to tech them to read write and do
The law was put in place to end discrimination on sex, race in hiring, promoting and firing. The law also ended segregation in public places. The 35th president JFK supported the act but it was strongly opposed by southern members of congress. When JFK passed away and Lyndon Johnson took office legislation added one more piece to the bill that gave Black Americans the right vote After LBJ took office he made sure that JFK’s Civil Right bill be his first priority. The Civil Rights Acts brought about several more bills that included the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that prohibited literacy test and discriminatory voting practices. Another extension of the act was the Fair Housing Act of 1968 which banned the discrimination in the sale of rental and financing of property. With the extension of these new bills blacks finally had a chance to own a little piece of the American Dream. When blacks began to settle in their new roles in society. Blacks began going to white schools it was all still meet by race problems and scrutiny even though legal segregation was laid to rest. Throughout all the civil rights demonstrations and marches and all these new acts and bills that has been put in place America still has race issues and they continue
Reconstruction in American society after the Civil War, which claimed many lives and displaced numerous families, was a period of integration of the Freedmen into the society by granting them their political and civil rights. However, one may ask, did reconstruction fail or succeed due to the high rate of racism at that period? According to Historian Steven Hahn, Reconstruction failed when Freedmen lost their military support of the North which increased the rate of violence towards the freedmen. Also, David Blight a Historian argues that reconstruction failed as a result of the high rate of racism and the injustice in the American society against the African American at that time. I agree with Hahn and Blight that, Reconstruction failed as a result of lack of injustice and racism against the African American, because the Freedmen were still being persecuted, had no equal rights to vote or own businesses like their white counterparts and also lacks the basic support of their Government. The Government's support and protection for the African American was vital for the Reconstruction movement to have succeeded, Although, the Radical Reconstruction made a tremendous effort to see that reconstruction movement was a success. However, with the compromise of the 1877, the withdrawal of the federal troops and high rate of racism towards
They helped provide education for the freed African Americans. According to the Virginia Historical Society, they say, “they used their authority over former confederate properties to provide buildings for schools.” The Freedman’s Bureau wanted to make sure that African Americans had a proper education because they were deprived of education while they were growing up. The Virginia Historical Society says, “the Freedman’s Bureau, missionary associations, and African Americans themselves funded the schools; many of the mostly white, female teachers came from the south with the missionary associations.” The Bureau wanted this to be successful and with the help of the missionary associations and the African Americas to fund the schools, it would make it a reality. The Freedman’s Bureau did everything that they could to make sure the African
The Freedmen Bureau was the federal institution in control of those terrains given to blacks and now they had to take it back. Under the administration of O. O. Howard the bureau functions were to "establish schools, provide aide to the poor and aged, settle disputes between whites and blacks and among freedpeople, and secure for former slave and white Unionist equal treatment before court," (Foner 483). The Bureau did not have enough agents to put in action the task appointed to it in the south. The Freedmen Bureau was dissolved after five years living the black man on its own.
Another important characteristic of the Reconstruction after the civil war was the creation of the Freedmen’s Bureau. Its responsibilities according to Foner (2014) were related with social work, “ Bureau agents were supposed to establish schools, provide aid to the poor and aged, settle disputes between whites and blacks and among the freedpeople, and secure for former slaves and white Unionists equal treatment before the courts” (p. 562) . Still, the Bureau lasted only until 1870, but made many achievements helping the black community.