The Three Reconstruction Amendments
On April 8, 1864, the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was officially passed. It was the first of the three reconstruction amendments after the American Civil war, and it marked the end of the slavery in American. African Americans has finally reached their goal- freedom.
What is freedom? As defined by Garrison Frazier, a spokesman of African Americans, freedom is “placing us where we could reap the fruit of our own labor, and take care of ourselves.” And the way to accomplish it was “to have land, and turn it and till it by our own labor.” (1) It sounds simple, isn’t it? However, even after years of war, the nation and its people were still not prepared to give away their properties. Southern landowners remained silent, pretending nothing happened, refused to share their lands with these freedmen. Politicians at north who started the war of freedom also hesitated, unwilling to commit citizenships and right to vote to those who were just freed. African Americans also had to face terrorist organizations such as Ku Klux Klan, which made them suffer from cruel assassinations and endless threats. (2) Lincoln’s successor, passed the Black Codes that created a new definition of freedom for African Americans. It “granted blacks certain rights, such as legalized marriage, ownership of property, and limited access to the courts,” while it also …show more content…
As the bill later became the fourteenth amendment, it grants citizenship and protections from laws for all persons born in the United States, including former slaves who just got freed. (5) The fourteenth amendment has played a big role in the reconstruction as it protected African Americans’ rights in life and moved the society forward. The last amendment passed in the Reconstruction was the fifteenth amendment, permitting all citizens the right to vote despite of their race. (6) Nevertheless, it did not offer such right to
What is freedom? As defined by Garrison Frazier, a spokesman of African Americans, freedom is “placing us where we could reap the fruit of our own labor, and take care of ourselves.” And the way to accomplish it was “to have land, and turn it and till it by our own labor.” (1) It sounds simple, isn’t it? However, even after years of war, the nation and its people were still not prepared to give away their properties. Southern landowners remained silent, pretending nothing happened, refused to share their lands with these freedmen. Politicians at north who started the war of freedom also hesitated, unwilling to commit citizenships and right to vote to those who were just freed. African Americans also had to face terrorist organizations such as Ku Klux Klan, which made them suffer from cruel assassinations and endless threats. (2) Lincoln’s successor, passed the Black Codes that created a new definition of freedom for African Americans. It “granted blacks certain rights, such as legalized marriage, ownership of property, and limited access to the courts,” while it also …show more content…
As the bill later became the fourteenth amendment, it grants citizenship and protections from laws for all persons born in the United States, including former slaves who just got freed. (5) The fourteenth amendment has played a big role in the reconstruction as it protected African Americans’ rights in life and moved the society forward. The last amendment passed in the Reconstruction was the fifteenth amendment, permitting all citizens the right to vote despite of their race. (6) Nevertheless, it did not offer such right to