How Did African Americans Change From 1865 To 1905 Dbq

The lives of African Americans in the South during 1865 to 1905 changed immensely due to the mindset of the South in the political, economic, and social spheres of life.

To begin, in politics, the policies regarding the African American citizens who always changing. Immediately after the conclusion of the Civil War, President Johnson passed a series of laws called the Black Codes that restricted the rights of the newly freed citizens. The African Americans had very similar conditions to those prior to the Civil War. “Every Negro is required to be in the regular service of some white person…who shall be held responsible for the conduct of said Negro,”(Document 2). Similar laws were created until the Radical Republicans took control of the
Thaddeus Stevens gave a speech promoting the passage of these laws. He stated, “If we do not furnish them with homesteads, and hedge them around with protective laws… we had better have left them in bondage,”(Document 1). The African Americans were also finally given a voice in the government. Starting in 1869 and ending in 1887, there was always an African American in a house seat. (Document 3). Also, the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment protected the African American man’s right to vote. Unfortunately, this era eventually ended. Reconstruction ended with the Compromise of 1877, which stopped the national government´s efforts in reconstruction. The conditions in the South were restored to what they were prior to the Civil War. Several Jim Crow laws were passed that separated the whites and African Americans in public facilities. After 1887, African Americans were not present in the Congress for a very long time (Document 3). It would be helpful to have a document that showed the decision- making of the Compromise of 1877 to
They did not have many economic opportunities because they were not welcome in white collared jobs. This means they were forced to take low- paying jobs without a prospect of getting a promotion. They were also threatened if they had intentions of self-improvement. Ida B. Wells recalled, “...the Negro is practically disfranchised through intimidation,” (Document 6). To add on, the Freedmen's Bureau did not end up working because the former slaves ended up working on their previous masters land as sharecroppers. Sharecropping involved a landowner to rent the land to a farmer in exchange for a portion of the profits created through the production of the crops. The conditions mirrored those experienced before the Civil War. Henry Blake, an African American farmer, recalled, “ When we worked on shares, we couldn't make nothing, just overalls and something to eat,” (Document 5). The African Americans had an unfair disadvantage due to the lack of economic prospects available to them. Overall, the economic lives of African Americans did not change throughout this