The Reconstruction Era.ppt - U.S. History: Mr. Hunt

The Aftermath of the Civil War

The Civil War * 1861-1865 Fought between the United States and the ConfederateStates of America The United States defeated the Confederate States ofAmerica

Coming to an end. 1865 Confederate troopsunder the leadership ofGeneral Robert E. Leesurrender at AppomattoxCourt House to UnionGeneral Ulysses S. Grant The Civil War is over and theUNION IS PRESERVED!

What now?Strengthened thepower of the federalgovernmentover the statesEnd of slaverywith passage of the13th AmendmentQuestion of howto heal or reconstructthe war torn nationRESULTS OF THECIVIL WARSouth is sociallyand economicallyweakened rise ofthe New SouthQuestion of what todo with the freedAfrican Americans

The Aftermath of the Civil WarThis is aphotograph takenafter the Civil Warin Richmond,Virginia, the capitalof the ConfederateStates

Reconstruction * 1865-1877Major Questions followingthe Civil War:1. How to re-build the South?2. How to bring Southernstates back into the UnitedStates?3. How to bring former slavesinto the United States asfree men and women?

Re-building the SouthOver 1 million Americans lost theirlives during the Civil War:664, 928 Northern Casualties483, 286 Southern CasualtiesAfter 4 years of war, could Northerners andSoutherners forgive each other?Could they become unified as citizens ofthe same country?

How to bring former Confederate Statesback into the United States?Should people who fought against the United Statesbe allowed to become American citizens? Shouldthey be punished?What should be done to southern state governmentsthat fought against the United States?

FreedmenAt the end of the Civil War, there werehundreds of thousands former slaves living inthe former Confederate States.How would freed menand women be treated inthe Southern States?What do you think weresome of the majorchallenges faced byformer slaves?

Finding Answers President Lincoln started to answer thequestions of Reconstruction in his 10% Plan. When Lincoln was assassinated AndrewJohnson, a Southerner and a Democrat whosympathized with the South, becamepresident and offered his own plan forReconstruction. Many people in Congress opposedJohnson—they were called RadicalRepublicans.

GoalsLincoln/JohnsonSpeedy RecoveryRadical RepublicansRADICAL (extreme) change*punish south*more power for RepublicanParty*Rights for AfricanAmericans

Lenient vs. PunishmentLincoln/JohnsonLenientStates never actually left theUnionRadical RepublicansBelieved the south shouldbe punished for starting thewar

Steps to Re-enter the UnionLincoln/Johnson10% Plan (Lincoln) – tenpercent of southern votersneeded to take an oath ofloyaltyRadical RepublicansReconstruction Act of 1867(1)Divide south into fivemilitary districts(2)Must ratify 14thAmendmentGenerous amnesty to allowsoutherners to retainproperty and reacquirepolitical rights(3)Rights for Freedman

Political Rights for AfricanAmericansLincoln/JohnsonRadical Republicans13th Amendment – abolishslavery13th Amendment –abolished slaveryReluctant to supportadditional political rights forAfrican Americans14th Amendment –citizenship and equalprotection15th Amendment – right tovote for AfricanAmericans

Political Rights: Legacy13th Amendment 1865Abolished slaveryCongress requiredformer Confederatestates to ratify theThirteenth Amendmentas a condition ofregaining federalrepresentation14th Amendment 1868Granted citizenship(overturns SupremeCourt case Dred Scott v.Sanford)Equal ProtectionGranted Congress powerto enforce amendment, aprovision that led to thepassage of otherlandmark legislation inthe 20th century,including the Civil RightsAct of 1964, and the1965 Voting Rights Act15th Amendment 1870Voting RightsLeft open the possibilitythat states couldinstitute voterqualifications; formerconfederate states tookadvantage of thisprovision, instituting polltaxes, and literacy tests,etc.

Programs for AfricanAmericansLincoln/JohnsonNot addressedRadical RepublicansExtended Freedman’sBureau to provide food,clothing, shelter, andeducation to freedman andwar refugees

ProblemsBlack codes Laws denied most legal rights to newly freedslaves; passed by Southern states following the Civil War.Southern States refused to ratify 14th AmendmentNo effort to help FreedmenFailures contributed to support of Radical RepublicansNorth felt robbed of their victory

Reconstruction Acts of 1867 Military Reconstruction Act– Restart Reconstruction in the 10 Southern statesthat refused to ratify the 14th Amendment.– Divide the 10 “unreconstructed states” into 5military districts.

Reconstruction Acts of 1867 Command of the Army Act– The President must issue allReconstruction orders through thecommander of the military. Tenure of Office Act– The President could not remove anyofficials [esp. Cabinet members] withoutthe Senate’s consent, if the positionoriginally required Senate approval. Designed to protect radical members ofLincoln’s government. A question of the constitutionality of this law.

Failures of Reconstruction

Sharecropping

Opposition to Black Rights

White Supremacy: KKK

Jim Crow LawsRestaurant, Lancaster, Ohio

What were Jim Crow laws?From the 1880s into the 1960s, most American statesenforced segregation or separation of blacks andwhites through "Jim Crow" laws. Jim Crow Laws wereany of the laws legalizing racial segregation of blacksand whites that were enacted in Southern statesbeginning in the 1880s and enforced through the1950's. The most common types of laws orderedbusiness owners and public buildings to keep blacksand whites separated.

What didJim CrowLook Like?-Promoted raciststereotypes duringminstrel (singing, comedy& variety) shows thattoured the country

Some areas that were separate: Bus station waiting rooms and ticket windows Railroad cars or coaches Restaurants and lunch counters Schools and public parks Restrooms and water fountains Sections of movie theaters There were even separate cemeteries

How did we get to Jim Crow? After the Civil War, all slaves were freed The period of Reconstruction, when African Americans’rights were protected by the military in the South, lastedfrom 1867‐1877 In 1877 “Home Rule” began in the South after the U.S.military left

What was the goal of“Home Rule?” During “Home Rule,” southern whites wanted life toreturn to the way it used to be before the Civil War The primary goal of “Home Rule” was to make AfricanAmericans occupy an inferior position in society belowthat of all whites

Notes Jim Crow was legalized SEGREGATION andDISCRIMINATION in the South. Jim Crow followed the RECONSTRUCTION when the Southregained control during HOME RULE and tried to makeAfrican Americans INFERIOR to whites.

How did southern whites makeAfrican Americans inferior? Jim Crow laws Intimidation (Ku Klux Klan – KKK) Lynchings Supreme Court decision saying “Separate but Equal wasOkay” (Plessy v. Ferguson) Take away voting rights of African Americans (literacy test,poll tax, grandfather clause)

Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision saying “Separate but Equal” Would be overturned in 1954 with Brown v. Board ofEducation of Topeka, Kansas. In a landmark decision, theU.S. Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Educationof Topeka that racial segregation in public schools wasunconstitutional The decision helped to inspire the civil rights movementof the late 1950s and 1960s

power of the federal government over the states RESULTS OF THE CIVIL WAR. The Aftermath of the Civil War This is a photograph taken after the Civil War in Richmond, . Radical Republicans. Political Rights for African Americans 13th Amendment – abolish slavery Reluctant to support