Reconstruction's Impact On The Lives Of African Americans During The Reconstruction Era

Many people will tell you that African Americans were free during the reconstruction after the civil war, which on paper may be the case. Life during this time was getting better, however, it still wasn’t good. African Americans faced multiple different forms of oppression that would make it seem that they were in prison. A few of these were the black codes, and the government's reaction to the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments. However the amendments were not meant to have the states to poke holes in them, they were made to give freed African Americans the same right as everyone else.

After a war that claimed the lives of more men than that of all other wars combined, much of the country was left in ruins, literally and figuratively. Dozens of towns in the South had been burned to the ground. Meanwhile, the relations between the North and South had crumbled to pieces. Something needed to be done so that the country could once again be the United States of America, not the Divided States of America. The years from 1865 to 1877 were a time of rebuilding – the broken communities and the broken relations. This time period was known as Reconstruction. Reconstruction was a failure on the basis that the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments that were passed should have given protection and freedom to the African

92. In 1865 an appointment was held between representatives of an African American community in Savannah, Georgia and Edwin Staunton, Secretary of War, and Major General Sherman concerning topics of the freedman in Georgia. Land was set aside, 40 acres, and a mule that could no longer be used by the Army to establish a community of their own.

In 1865, slavery was abolished, by the Thirteenth amendment. This Amendment brought humongous changes and a large number of problems. (Lecture 1) After the destruction of slavery, it left nearly four million African American with no property, little training, and few rights; which made the definition of freedom for African Americans the central question on the nation’s agenda. The big question of the time period was, “what was freedom for African Americans?” (Give me liberty! An American 550)

In the years 1863-1877, blacks were able to make their first successful efforts in terms of empowerment, creating the foundation for future African American movements. During reconstruction, African Americans, through collaboration and politics, began to work at equal rights. By empowering themselves politically, building communities and fighting against the lynching efforts of the KKK and other anti-black terrorist groups, African Americans began a movement to combat racism in the United States.

History helps shape the future and what we can learn from it to make sure that we do not repeat the same mistakes. During Reconstruction, the country was trying to make amends after the war was over. The country needed to find a way to mend a broken nation because it was divided. The main issue during reconstruction was the status of African Americans because they wanted their civil rights, but could not get that. The question that needs to be answered is: who did the most to aid the cause of African American during Reconstruction, and why? Many organizations and people helped African Americans, but the Freedman’s Bureau did the most.

African American that became a Freedmen are now officially a full United States citizen, but now face with segregation from the white. The government however, help with these problem with the Freedmen Bureau program. The South’s reaction to the Reconstruction that were given out to the North however, felt that their land are being taken by the carpetbaggers from the North for their political and economic gained during the 1863 to 1877. The Reconstruction are still seen overall as both positive and negative because it has had it’s downfall and gain from it. The aftermath of Reconstruction however, allowed blacks many rights that they have never gotten before and it’s a good beginning to Americans and the country as a whole for ending the unholiness of

The American Civil War was ending and African Americans gained freedom, freedom from slavery and to live life as common folk. However, being set ‘free’ was not enough for African Americans to really experience what freedom was really like. Respect and rights of citizenship are by themselves weak in the ability to survive without also obtaining economic power. This paper will examine the progression of African Americans after the Civil War of 1865.

During the period of Reconstruction, the African Americans secured many meaningful liberties which consisted of the right to vote, due process of law, protection of private property and the opportunity to run for elected office. However by the year 1910, African Americans could no longer claim many of these rights. At the close of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century, race relations between the whites and the blacks also underwent many changes and it changed for the worse and finally it paved way for mass movement for Civil Rights.

The Reconstruction Period I think is a problem for the African Americans back then. They were treated unfairly during this period, when it was to being them a new started and hope of change. Don’t get me wrong there were some people who were for them to e happy, but not many. So, let start at the being; where it all happened. In January of 1865, Union General William T. Sherman issued a special field order Number 15, which temporary granted each freed family 40 acres of land off the region of Georgia in the islands and coastal area. Also the Union Army donated mules to them after the war was over. In the summer of 1865 when President Andrew Johnson was in office, his first act of Reconstruction was to give back all the federal control land back to its previous owner. When the land was giving back to the owners, freed men and women could sign a labor contracts with the planters or they could leave the land they occupied this was called Freedman’s Bureau. Soon after when the land was giving back, the former Confederate state stated “Black Codes”. Black Codes would deny African Americans to legal have equality and political rights. Also it would require then to sign yearly labor contracts with the planters. When this happen, Congress made the Reconstruction Act in the 1867, when the 14th (June 13, 1866) and the 15th (February 26, 1869, ratified on February 3, 1870) Amendments. These two amendments granted African Americans the right to vote, and equality before the law and

America was at a very conflicted time during reconstruction after the civil war. While there was many ways radical republicans enforced their beliefs and helped the former slaves, the former confederates fought back with two times as much force. The country was completely split because of these two polarizing groups. Lives of the former slaves were heavily debated and extremely toyed with. These times have molded modern day society in the United States.

In 1865, the United States government implemented what was known as Reconstruction. Its’ purpose was to remove slavery from the south, and give African-American’s the freedom in which they deserved. However, the freedom that they deserved was not the freedom that they received. With documents like The Black Codes restricting them from numerous privileges that white people had and the terroristic organization known as the Klu Klux Klan attacking and killing them, African-American’s were still being oppressed by their government as well as their fellow man. Slavery may have been abolished, but African-American’s were not yet given the freedom and rights that their white counterparts took for granted.

Many Africans had a lot of problem s back in the day they could not do nothing or be free if you would want to know more about them well keep reading. The reason why reconstruction was led was because of slavery and because the civil war. Reconstruction impacted the white and especially the African americans. The successes and failures of reconstruction impacted the lives of the African Americans in both positive and negative. Socially negative because they were getting abused from white people.

During reconstruction the United States was divided on social issues, presidential campaigns were won and loss on these issues during this period. The struggle for development of African Americans and how they initiated change in political, economic, educational, and social conditions to shape their future and that of the United States. (Dixon, 2000) The South’s attempts to recover from the Civil war included determining what to do with newly freed slaves and finding labor to replace them. The task of elevating the Negro from slave to citizen was the most enormous one which had ever confronted the country. Local governments implemented mechanisms of discrimination to combat citizenship

The Reconstruction era was put into effect by Congress in 1866 and lasted until 1877. Reconstruction was aimed at reorganizing the Southern states after the Civil War. The reconstruction plan granted the means for readmitting the southern states into the Union, and tried to come up with the methods by which whites and blacks could live together in a non-slave society. America's position as a country was established on principles of freedom but those beliefs were weakened by slavery. At the end of the Civil War, many blacks felt that they were entitled to start collecting the benefits that had been denied for so many years. Being able to vote, own land and have a voice in political affairs were all goals that they believed were reachable.