Republican And Democratic Parties During The Reconstruction Era

Following the establishment of the Republican and Democratic parties, each fraction has always clashed over key political arguments happening in the country. The parties are seen as opposites in the point of view of many Americans, as they take different sides almost all the time, even in today’s political establishment. During the Reconstruction Era, the Democratic party was the party of slavery and business because they were mainly supported in the south and was called “The White Man’s Party” from the Republicans. While the Republican party during this era was the party of the Union and supported African American rights, which gave them the name “Negro dominated” by the Democrats, even though White men lead the party. After many years of
In the political cartoon “Republican and Democratic Principles” by Thomas Nast, it shows two sides of a grave with different perspectives relating to each political party and how they responded to the Unions victory over the Confederates in the Reconstruction Era. On the Republican side of the political cartoon, “[there is] a woman at the grave site who represents America and is placing different things on the grave like “Amnesty” and “Suffrage” to honor the grave of Confederates and to move on with forgiveness. In addition, on a tree it states, “Let us have PEACE” and on the grave, it says “The Constitution as it is”” (The Old Print Shop, http://oldprintshop.com/product/144311). The woman as America laying down forgiveness on the Confederate grave represents how America is trying to move forward from the past and forgive the south with peace with the “The Constitution as it is”. While on the Democratic side of the political cartoon, “[There are] wolves trying to dig up the Confederate grave with different collars that say topics relating to the south like, “Ku Klux”, “Demagogue”, and “J. Davis Speeches” with the fourteenth and fifteenth amendment scratched out. As to go against the Republicans, on the other side of the political cartoon the words on the tree states, “Let us” with the peace scratched out and the grave saying, “The
Civil War. Although the America of 1865 to 1877 is very different from current America, the country is going through a very similar process of reconstruction after the very dividing and damaging election season of 2016. Like the America during the Reconstruction Era, the people are divided and fighting with each other over many political issues that were presented by both candidates and parties, just like the Democrats and Republicans were fighting over in 1865. This included policy changes in the federal government and the belief that their culture was being threatened by the other side with their policies, just like in today’s society. For instance, Richard Wormser writes “After Lincoln's assassination in April of 1865, President Andrew Johnson alienated Congress with his Reconstruction policy. He supported white supremacy in the South and favored pro-Union Southern political leaders who had aided the Confederacy once the war had been declared.” (PBS, Wormser) This shows the similarities between the Reconstruction Era and in today’s government because during the Civil War you had President Lincoln who believed in the union and anti-slavery, but right after Lincoln came President Johnson who was pro-slavery and white supremacy and kind of opposite from President Lincoln. This is