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Reconstruction Problems

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There were many issues and problems facing the United States during its post-Civil War era of Reconstruction. Such problems include, but are not limited to economy, civil rights, reunification, and Federal Government infringement of state’s rights. The Union faced one major problem during both the “Presidential Reconstruction” and “Congressional Reconstruction”, which was the divide within the Republican Party. At the onset of Reconstruction the Republican Party worked well with President Lincoln and accepted he plan to accomplish the reestablishment of the Union. After, the President Lincoln’s assassination by a southerner, the Republican Party demanded swift justice against the south. With President Lincoln no longer carrying out his plan, …show more content…

President Lincoln, a Republican himself, issued a statement to Congress on December 8th, 1863 when he announced his plans for Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction. President Lincoln was immediately met with resistance on his plan of Reconstruction by Congress, which was controlled by the Radical Republicans who demanded swift and harsh punishment for the South. This is the first demonstration of a divide in Republican approach to Reconstruction. President Lincolns plan was to first integrate Louisiana and Arkansas back into the Union, but Congress felt that the requirements for an ex-confederate state to rejoin were too lenient and opened the door for Confederate ideals to rise again. Congress believed in Reconstruction, but refused to recognize ex-confederate representatives in the attempt to stop the “Presidential Reconstruction’ ideals for taking root and wished to inject their own Radical Republican Reconstruction plans. The Republicans were now split on a political level in the Union between the Executive Branch and Legislative Branch, within the Legislative Branch there was even greater divide between the Conservative Republicans and Radical …show more content…

Reconstruction was intended to unify the states once more and allowing for the United States to stabilize its economy in a post war era. The Union may have felt minimal impact under its industrial institution, but the south was in shambles and its agricultural institution that was its pre-war economy was not nonexistent under Reconstruction. In the south the lives of planters, non-slave holding whites, and even former slaves was directly affected by reconstruction. The farmers no longer had guaranteed labor to work their fields, which meant a decline in agriculture production and the export of raw materials. Freed slaves who remained in the south did not have a means to support their family due to the lack of support and work for freed slaves and if any support was coming it was slowed down by the divide of the Union on Reconstruction. A new system of Sharecropping emerged as the new institution replacing slavery, but acceptance was slow at best. With the lack of income for most southerners who relied on the institution of slavery had to turn to credit with merchants and moved away from financial independence. In addition to economic instability, the creation of violent groups such as the Ku Klux Klan emerged and attacked anyone, white or African American, who

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In the article “The New View of Reconstruction,” Eric Foner writes about the difficult time that the United States go through the Reconstruction era. Also, discusses the different point of view or interpretation that Reconstruction era had over the years. The author Eric Foner describes the Reconstruction era as a difficult time after the Civil War. The Reconstruction was from the beginning and before 1960 as a time of exceptional debasement and control of the freedman.

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Lincoln claimed he had the authority to determine the conditions for the South’s readmission to the union. He didn’t want to punish the South, he just wanted to end the war and restore the nation quickly and painlessly. Lincoln’s plan, the Ten-Percent Plan, required that ten percent of the voters who had in the 1860 election swear an oath to the union, and accept the emancipation of slaves through the thirteenth amendment. Those ten percent would then reorganize their state government, and apply for readmission to the union. Congress’ plan differed, as the Radical Republicans in Congress viewed the southern states as conquered territory.

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540 Words | 3 Pages

Reconstruction DBQ Have you ever wondered who killed Reconstruction? Reconstruction was a point in time after the Civil War wanting to rebuild the United States. The division between the North and the South was because the North wanted all slaves to be free, on the other hand the South didn’t want slaves to be free the South wanted the slaves to be limited on what they can do. I think the South killed Reconstruction because of the KKK and the disagreement on equal rights.

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The Radical Republicans believed in equal rights and opportunities for all African Americans and whites Andrew Johnson became the new president and congress hated him because he was a Southerner and was lenient

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A few days after the civil War ended, President Lincoln was assassinated and never had the chance to implement his Reconstruction plan.   The Reconstruction Era occurred in the period of 1865 to 1877 under the reign of President Andrew Johnson who was the predecessor of President Lincoln.  Congress was not scheduled to convene until December 1865, which gave Johnson eight months to pursue his own Reconstruction policies. Under his Reconstruction policies, the former Confederate states were required to join back into the Union and heal the wounds of the nation.

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The Reconstruction Era of American history was plagued by many problems. One of the most important problems being the recently released from slavery Freedmen. Freedmen were in a tricky situation in which they had just been released from their owner and had nowhere to go, but the Federal Government made many successful attempts to help them out. The Government helped alleviate all the problems Freedmen had from their finances to basic needs and rights, and in doing so, made the period of reconstruction more helpful than harmful for Freedmen. The events of reconstruction were helpful to freedmen as they were not only freed from slavery, they were given rights directly from the federal government.

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The time period after the Civil War was a very interesting time. Just because the Civil War was over does not mean that all of the hard feelings would go away. Families had been separated during the war and many of them still believed in what they had been fighting for. The Union had to figure out a way to get the North and South to work as a team, yet many politicians had different views as to how this should be done. Another issue that began to rise was between the President and Congress.

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This created no better life for freed people. They were still doing practically the same jobs and still barely getting by from what they were given for the work. The quality of life in the south was much worse than in the north. After the civil war, many people in the north had their jobs replaced by

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Peter Schroeder Dr. Christopher Marshall Modern United States History 2/2/17 Writing Assignment 1: The African-American Experience with Reconstruction Reconstruction among the south refers to the point in time which the United States was attempting to establish a relationship between the union and the rebels. The Union had won the civil war, so the next step was to begin to mend the broken relationship between the north and the south. Though historians cannot agree on when it began, there is merit in saying that it started before the end of the Civil War. After victory, had been solidified for the Union, attention of President Lincoln turned towards reconstruction.

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Reconstruction was a period of time dedicated to rebuilding the nation after the Civil War. The war ended with the South being defeated and their economy being devastated. Many Southerners struggled after the war with rebuilding their land and lives. The President and Congress had to decide the terms for which the former Confederate states would be permitted to join the Union. President Lincoln’s plan for reuniting the country was found in the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction.

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Maceo Cardinale Kwik Reconstruction Reconstruction was the twelve years after the civil war. Those twelve years were full of readjustment fixing the ruin the United States had fallen into. The problems that had the United states in disarray were how to, rebuild the South, reunite the states, and ensure the rights and protection of the newly freed African Americans. The civil war left the South in shambles, and newly freed slaves struggled to adjust to their new freedom. Most Southerners hated reconstruction and everything else about the North.

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The American civil war led to the reunion of the South and the North. But, its consequences led the Republicans to take the lead of reconstructing what the war had destroyed especially in the South because it contained larger numbers of newly freed slaves. Just after the civil war, America entered into what was called as the reconstruction era. Reconstruction refers to when “the federal government established the terms on which rebellious Southern states would be integrated back into the Union” (Watts 246). As a further matter, it also meant “the process of helping the 4 million freed slaves after the civil war [to] make the transition to freedom” (DeFord and Schwarz 96).

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Reconstruction is during which the United States began to rebuild the Southern society after they lost to the civil war. It lasted from 1865 to 1877, and it was initiated by President Lincoln until his assassination in 1865. President Johnson continued Lincoln’s agenda to continue the Reconstruction. Throughout the process of Reconstruction, one of its main purpose was to guarantees for equal rights for all people, especially for the African Americans. Even though slavery was abolished after the civil war, many Southerners were still against the idea of equal rights for all black people, such as the Republicans.

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1136 Words | 5 Pages

The American Civil War that was started due to the controversy over slavery in 1861, was won by The Union supported by President Lincoln against the Confederate states. President Lincoln’s original goal during the civil war was to reunify the nation as quickly as possible and help both sides come to an understanding. After the Civil War ended in 1865, the newly formed United States’ reconstruction era began. The Reconstruction era was put into effect by the Congress in 1866 and lasted until 1877. The Union’s victory in the Civil War had given African Americans a new sense of hope, devastated the southern economy, and eased the history of disunity in American political life.

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835 Words | 4 Pages

Reconstruction caused prejudice and inequality. To elaborate, the creation of the Ku Klux Klan and the Black Codes were both in the time period of reconstruction, which caused chaos and violence throughout the Union. One of the goals of reconstruction was to repair the economy in the South, because it depended on slavery, which was now illegal, due to the thirteenth amendment. The South’s economic system now depended on Sharecropping, which caused former slaves to be in constant debt and was unjust to the black society. The reconstruction time period, was a time of dispute between the Union.

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