The Reconstruction of many Southern states from the year 1865 to 1877 is a failure, although reconstruction plans are set up, African Americans still face the same poor treatment they are given prior to the Civil War. The president at the time, Abraham Lincoln, puts in place a reconstruction plan to help rebuild the South in a way it has never been before, without slaves. Lincoln also puts the thirteenth amendment in place, which abolishes slavery. However, after Lincoln’s death, his Vice President, Andrew Johnson takes over and overrules his reconstruction plan, and puts in place his own, which favors the former Confederate states. Johnson fights with congress over the passing of the fourteenth amendemnet, but Congress overrules his vetoes,
Abraham Lincoln’s vs Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan Lincoln shared the uncommon belief that the confederate states could still be part of the union and that the cause of the rebellion was only a few within the states which lead him to begin the reconstruction in December of 1863. This resulted in plans with lenient guidelines and although they were challenged by Wade-Davis Bill, Lincoln still rejected his ideas and kept his policies in place. Lincoln also allowed land to be given the newly freed slave or homeless white by distributing the land that had been confiscated from former land owners however this fell through once Johnson took office. After Lincoln’s death when Johnson was elected many things started to turn away from giving blacks equal rights and resulted in many things such a black codes which kept newly freed slaves from having the same rights as whites. When Lincoln first acted after the civil war, he offered policies that would allow the confederate slaves to become part of the union again and would allow a pardon for those states.
After Lincoln got assassinated, Andrew Johnson became president. During the summer of 1865 Johnson planned his reconstruction plan, and in his reconstruction said that states had to agree with the 13th amendment ( which abolished slavery ). February 1866 Congress passed the freedmen’s bureau and this gives the military responsibility for protecting the blacks, but Johnson vetoed the bill, surprising many republicans. Congress enacts the Civil Rights Act of 1866 on April 1866. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 means… “ it grants citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and guarantees them equal rights under the law.”
"During Reconstruction, thousands of Africans-Americans were elected to local and state governments throughout the Southerns states". (Doc E) Many African Americans leader during Reconstruction had gained their freedom before the Civil War. “In addition 17 African Americans were elected in the United States congress”. As result African Americans and white Americans stood side by side for the first time in political life.
Andrew Jackson’s view on slavery was no surprise, based on his upbringing and lifestyle. Having been a slave owner and American hero, Jackson was a man of the common folk. He believed that distinct classes of people was a very bad idea, because it would consolidate corruption and the power of the upper class. This ties into Jackson’s stance on slavery, which was a positive good that would help to raise the lower class up to a more equal position with that of the rich and powerful. And by removing free white men from having to do menial tasks that could be given to slaves, white men could get to work on advancing America and technologies.
Abraham Lincoln often seemed to contradict himself on the subject of slavery. This was most often the case during his campaigns for office. The campaign for Senate that put him in the national spotlight ended in a loss perhaps in part due to his opponent, a pro-slavery states’ rights advocate by the name of Stephen Douglas, bringing attention to these contradictions. Illinois was divided on the issue of slavery in 1858. Northern Illinois had a large abolitionist movement while the southern half of the state had a majority that supported slavery.
Andrew Johnson, former Vice President to President Abraham Lincoln, was sworn into office after the assassination of Lincoln in April of 1865. Andrew Johnson served as the 17th President of the United Stated from 1865-1869. Johnson, seemingly an honest and righteous man had every odd up against him including the Radical Republicans. He had no chance when up against the jurisdiction of the Radicals and fell short of dominion every time. Johnson’s reign was one of the few compelling presidency’s due to his continuous mix-ups and battles with the Radicals.
James Weldon Johnson's book, Autobiography of an Ex-Coloured Man, is a brilliant and masterful piece of fiction written in the notion of an autobiography. Within the “autobiography,” James Weldon Johnson constructs a fabricated account of a young biracial man in turmoil with his racial identity within a highly prejudiced contemporary 19th-century America. As you would expect, the story contains numerous different themes of racial identity, sense of belonging, and even of racial “passing”. However, despite all these persistent themes, one stands out the most. The theme is music.
Efforts from the congress after the rejection of President Andrew Johnson’s Reconstruction Plan involved enacting laws and amendments that enforced equal rights only to the now freed male slaves and gave them the right to vote and hold office. The government, confronted with formation of anti-equality groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and many others that opposed equality, soon enacted the Black Codes. The congress then passed the Freedmen’s Bureau and Civil Rights Bills in hopes to settle the quarrels of slavery by declaring all born in the U.S as citizens but unfortunately, Johnson declined these bills. To retaliate, the Civil Rights Act
Johnson offered a pardon to all Southern whites that were not leaders during the Confederacy and were not wealthy plantation owners (although most of these subsequently received individual pardons) which restored their political rights and all property except for their slaves which were now freed. “He also outlined how new state governments would be created. Apart from the requirement that they abolish slavery, repudiate secession, and abrogate the Confederate debt, these governments were granted a free hand in managing their affairs.” (Eric Foner 3) The Southern people responded by enacting the Black codes, which were laws that required African Americans to sign yearly labor contracts and in other ways sought to limit the freedmen’s economic options and reestablish plantation discipline, or in other words, return them to slavery using loopholes in the legal system.
Not only did politics play a crucial role in the citizenship of women, but it also played a major role in the eventual emancipation of African-American slaves. In the article “A Man but Not a Brother: Abraham Lincoln and Racial Equality”, author George Fredrickson examined the various statements and influences of United States President Abraham Lincoln, to understand his political beliefs on the issues of race and slavery. When viewed all together, these elements suggest that Lincoln was not a typical Negrophobe or a firm fighter for racial equality. To put him in either category would misrepresent his views on race. One of Lincoln’s biggest influences in regards to race and slavery was Henry Clay.
Kennedy once said,“ This Nation … was founded on the principle that all men are created equal, and that the rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.”. This is something that is true and our former leaders seem to have forgotten one of the principles we based our government on. The southern leaders violated this right by imposing discriminating laws. Some of these laws prevented the African Americans from using their rights. For example, the literacy test that was built to stop African American from voting.
The reason why so many African Americans felt that civil rights was not pushed enough in supporting their new freedom was seen here in, “The Ghetto Uprisings.” In this section Eric Foner states that, “With black unemployment twice that of whites and the average black family income little more than half the white norm.” The point here is that if civil rights had pushed freedom over and above then they might could have decent jobs and fix their poverty problems. Seen in the section, “Freedom and Equality” Eric Foner says, “Johnson’s Great Society may not achieved equality … but it represented the most expansive effort” When conditions such as this came up and fell through, African Americans began to feel that if freedom had been promoted more,
During his presidency, Congress ratified the 13th-Amendment that abolished slavery in 1865. In addition, President Johnson made contributions to the black people by vetoing bills that increased protection offered by Freedman Bureau. His vetoes also nullified the Black Codes and guaranteed full citizenship and equal rights to black people. This brought up the Civil Rights Act of 1866, an act that granted citizenships and same rights that both black and white enjoyed. As a result, the Civil Rights Act set up the basis for the 14th amendments that was also later ratified in 1866.
