Post-Civil War Reconstruction
Post-Civil War Reconstruction Essay
The Civil War managed to divide the United States into two sections incapable of negotiating a way to effectively work together. When the war ended in 1864, with the Union taking the victory, it left America in ruins and from there America started the reconstruction process in an effort to restore the glory that once was. Although Reconstruction had the complete intentions of creating an even better America than before, it unfortunately regressed because of things such as Black Codes, the inauguration of Andrew Johnson, and the formation of hate groups such as the KKK. It is with these examples that make the statement, “While the north won the war, the south won reconstruction”, ring true.
After the Civil …show more content…
Black Codes were a way for the government to keep African Americans inferior to all of the other whites in fear of them somehow becoming superior to the whites, especially when it came to jobs. The Black Codes worked to create an illusion of slavery by creating laws that directly imitated slavery. Laws such as no “unlawful assembly”, and that if an apprentice is found misbehaving then “said master or mistress shall have [the] power to inflict…moderate corporal chastisement” (Johnson 7). All of the examples resembled the treatment of slave’s just years earlier. In order for African Americans to make a life for themselves after the Civil War they were forced to work. Many whites were more than willing to hire African Americans because they worked for long hours and for cheap pay. Providing jobs for African Americans to get themselves back onto their feet is one of the few benefits that Reconstruction had in incorporating freed slaves into regular life. However, although the idea had good intent, it was executed very poorly. For example, the porters who worked in sleeping cars suffered extreme unfairness and racism in the workplace, as well as suffering very little pay for long, hard, and strenuous hours (“Brotherhood of Sleeping Car …show more content…
However, the efforts that were made by Andrew Johnson suggest that ending racism and slavery in America was not a priority, and America is still suffering because of this. In ways such as hate groups and crude showcases of racism in the South towards African Americans. Although the North won the short term goals of ending slavery in the South, the South ultimately won in shaping America around their racist views, which hindered us from progressing as a nation and working towards making America the great country that it could be. However, it cannot be ignored that the Reconstruction did do some things right. It introduced the first African Americans into Congress, which was a complete game changer because it opened the door for African Americans to participate in roles that before would have been completely out of the question. In conclusion, the post-Civil War Reconstruction era had its pros and cons, and it ultimately became an event that America could reflect and learn
The Civil War managed to divide the United States into two sections incapable of negotiating a way to effectively work together. When the war ended in 1864, with the Union taking the victory, it left America in ruins and from there America started the reconstruction process in an effort to restore the glory that once was. Although Reconstruction had the complete intentions of creating an even better America than before, it unfortunately regressed because of things such as Black Codes, the inauguration of Andrew Johnson, and the formation of hate groups such as the KKK. It is with these examples that make the statement, “While the north won the war, the south won reconstruction”, ring true.
After the Civil …show more content…
Black Codes were a way for the government to keep African Americans inferior to all of the other whites in fear of them somehow becoming superior to the whites, especially when it came to jobs. The Black Codes worked to create an illusion of slavery by creating laws that directly imitated slavery. Laws such as no “unlawful assembly”, and that if an apprentice is found misbehaving then “said master or mistress shall have [the] power to inflict…moderate corporal chastisement” (Johnson 7). All of the examples resembled the treatment of slave’s just years earlier. In order for African Americans to make a life for themselves after the Civil War they were forced to work. Many whites were more than willing to hire African Americans because they worked for long hours and for cheap pay. Providing jobs for African Americans to get themselves back onto their feet is one of the few benefits that Reconstruction had in incorporating freed slaves into regular life. However, although the idea had good intent, it was executed very poorly. For example, the porters who worked in sleeping cars suffered extreme unfairness and racism in the workplace, as well as suffering very little pay for long, hard, and strenuous hours (“Brotherhood of Sleeping Car …show more content…
However, the efforts that were made by Andrew Johnson suggest that ending racism and slavery in America was not a priority, and America is still suffering because of this. In ways such as hate groups and crude showcases of racism in the South towards African Americans. Although the North won the short term goals of ending slavery in the South, the South ultimately won in shaping America around their racist views, which hindered us from progressing as a nation and working towards making America the great country that it could be. However, it cannot be ignored that the Reconstruction did do some things right. It introduced the first African Americans into Congress, which was a complete game changer because it opened the door for African Americans to participate in roles that before would have been completely out of the question. In conclusion, the post-Civil War Reconstruction era had its pros and cons, and it ultimately became an event that America could reflect and learn