In 1865, Abraham Lincoln ended slavery in the United States. While the African Americans became free, they were still not equal. Horrible things were still happening to former slaves, even though the U.S. was trying to reconstruct the country. Reconstruction was a time where former slaves were being integrated into society. The same year slavery was abolished, The Black Codes were created. These laws oppressed black people and restricted their freedom. Because of the poor treating of African Americans and the Black Codes, The Reconstruction period was a failure. Some people were very unhappy when slavery was abolished. Southerners were frustrated that their property would be taken from them and turned into citizens. The Freedmen’s Bureau was started to help blacks be integrated back into society, and to teach them. This group was created by the Federal government. Radical Southerners did not like this idea at all. In return, they created laws called the Black Codes to oppress African Americans. These acts made sure the former slaves signed labor contracts, and they would be fined or forced into unpaid labor if they didn’t. This method of making sure blacks are still laborers was horrible and the former slave-owners loved it. …show more content…
There was a lot of violence and killing to keep blacks out of politics. Sharecropping was a way to scam African Americans to farm for you and make them owe you money, so they have to keep working to pay off the debt. The Supreme Court let oppression happen legally, and could deny people the right to vote. The way black people were treated during reconstruction makes it a