Slavery: Franklin D. Roosevelt and African American Boys
Summary: Slavery By Another Name
For years African Americans were slaves. The Emancipation Proclamation helped them for a while with slavery. Due to the 13th amendment, slavery would be abolished, unless there was a crime committed. African Americans thought they were free and wanted to start their own families, but evil was on the rising. Racial groups began to attack blacks and to mistreat them. Their leader was Andrew Johnson. Then, because of the president, a radical movement was done and it helped keep African Americans safer for a while.
Not long after, Convict Leasing was put into motion. There was wiggle room in the 13th amendment, which told that slavery was abolished, unless there was a crime committed. In the whole convict population, only 10% were white. A man named Comer used African Americans in his coal mine. This was known as Convict Mining. Disease was in the mines, explosions from coal falling from the walls, and gas. There were blacks chained up, and Comer would beat them. He was referred to as a cold man who would beat a man over 100 times. Then he would say they weren’t whipped. African American boys, who were younger than 16, were a lot of the population of the convicts. Girls and women were also in the population also. Some convicts were sent to the mines due to trivial crimes and could suffer death. 30-40% of the convicts died in a year. By 1890 there were 19000 convicts in the population and 90% of those were African Americans. There was an alarming rise in black crime. They were 3 times over represented in the prison population. They were misrepresented. Due to this, blacks’ reputation began to turn negative and segregation was mandated. Voting rights were also being messed with. In 1896, the Supreme Court through Plessey vs. Ferguson mandated segregation. September of 1901 was a new age, but Peonage laws were being broken. Peonage comes from the term “peon.” A man named John Davis was an African American who was stopped one day
For years African Americans were slaves. The Emancipation Proclamation helped them for a while with slavery. Due to the 13th amendment, slavery would be abolished, unless there was a crime committed. African Americans thought they were free and wanted to start their own families, but evil was on the rising. Racial groups began to attack blacks and to mistreat them. Their leader was Andrew Johnson. Then, because of the president, a radical movement was done and it helped keep African Americans safer for a while.
Not long after, Convict Leasing was put into motion. There was wiggle room in the 13th amendment, which told that slavery was abolished, unless there was a crime committed. In the whole convict population, only 10% were white. A man named Comer used African Americans in his coal mine. This was known as Convict Mining. Disease was in the mines, explosions from coal falling from the walls, and gas. There were blacks chained up, and Comer would beat them. He was referred to as a cold man who would beat a man over 100 times. Then he would say they weren’t whipped. African American boys, who were younger than 16, were a lot of the population of the convicts. Girls and women were also in the population also. Some convicts were sent to the mines due to trivial crimes and could suffer death. 30-40% of the convicts died in a year. By 1890 there were 19000 convicts in the population and 90% of those were African Americans. There was an alarming rise in black crime. They were 3 times over represented in the prison population. They were misrepresented. Due to this, blacks’ reputation began to turn negative and segregation was mandated. Voting rights were also being messed with. In 1896, the Supreme Court through Plessey vs. Ferguson mandated segregation. September of 1901 was a new age, but Peonage laws were being broken. Peonage comes from the term “peon.” A man named John Davis was an African American who was stopped one day