Essay On Reconstruction After Civil War

After the Civil War the leaders of our fragmented nation were forced to face a daunting task. Government officials who did not have any constitutional guidelines on readmission had to pick of the pieces of a divided country and develop a plan that would bring states back into the Union. Furthermore, new economic and social policy was needed to accommodate freedmen. Reconstruction was a failed approach to reunite the Union because of weak policy and the inability of executives to develop a nonpartisan plan that would ease tension with the Southern states. The lack of multiple administration’s competence was evident while reconstruction was occurring. As the initial reconstruction efforts began, President Abraham Lincoln was presented with the Wade-Davis Bill, in 1864. Instead of signing a bill that would allow for racial equality and permit states to rejoin the Union by a simple majority of votes by prewar voters, Lincoln pocket vetoed it. Unfortunately, Lincoln was assassinated in mid 1865 and was unable to bestow a new plan for readmission. This task fell upon then Vice President Andrew Johnson. Although his plan was widely accepted by Republicans, it had no mention of civil rights
If Lincoln, Johnson, Grant, or Hays changed their policy and attempted to ease the tension between whites and blacks, Reconstruction would have been more successful. In addition to the social changes that would occur, a new economic atmosphere would be created. Reconstruction was a similar failure to the Internment Camps during World War II. Instead of attacking the situation head on, the United States government decided to make decisions that had no definite alibi for doing. This resulted in the oppression of innocent Japanese Americans, in similar way blacks were mistreated. If Reconstruction was not as unsuccessful, the country would be far more advanced than it is