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A common misconception of the Civil War is that when it was finally over, people think that all the African Americans were immediately freed and they lived happily for the rest of their lives. Well, that is not quite accurate, as there were many things that had occurred during the time right after the American Civil War, known as the Reconstruction Era. This includes the the numerous laws and institutions that were put forth to help African Americans, such as the Reconstruction amendments. Many white Americans, especially those from the south, had opposed the idea of giving blacks the same opportunities and rights as they were given.
Not all were slaves in that matter. A lot of African-Americans bought their freedom and got a lot of money for working jobs like the White people did. Most White people did not like the idea of that and tried to force them to move.
The Constitution also left the decision of citizenship of African Americans up to the states altogether giving up on the issue of slavery. Those African Americans that were fortunate enough to be free were in a totally different realm than those of the slaves. The free African Americans could be considered citizens of the United States while
From historical events, black men were slaves. This was after they were brought to America. In some ways even today they could be seen as slaves. They were treated like animals and were viewed as property.
Therefore, freeing the slaves was not important. All men aren’t created equally as shown in these times. The belief that slavery was wrong, was not strong enough for the the Constitution to overcome. Mr. Freehling said, “The only way Africans could be free was if they were sent back to Africa”.
The recently freed African Americans plead to receive citizenship and equal rights, they expected to be treated as any other human being. After many years of slavery, the African Americans were finally freed from slavery by president Lincoln. Many of them were granted freedom for serving loyally in the Union army, along with certain rights, such as the right to buy land. The freed slaves were then allowed to purchase land, and received help from the government in the form of establishments such as Freedman’s Bureau and Freedmen’s Aid Society. The former slaves were now allowed to attend certain churches, schools, and were also allowed to socialize in public, although only in certain places.
Unfortunately, there have been events proving such statement and it is upsetting to know that after all the decades of fighting for equality this is still an issue for blacks, especially for African-Americans living in our country. African slaves first were brought to America in 1619 to the colony of Jamestown, Virginia. They served as the foundation of a new nation by working on crop production such as tobacco and cotton, and became a solid importance to the South´s economy
Another human rights that was also stripped from African American slaves was the right to liberty and freedom. The right to liberty and freedom is the right of everyone being born equal, the right to having your own thoughts and ideas, and everyone in the world has the right to be treated in the same way. The right to liberty and freedom was stripped from African American slaves when every white slave owner/masters would treat them as if they were property. In document 1, a speech given by Frederick Douglass in 1850, he tells us that slave owners/masters had absolute power over the slave which allows them to do anything they please. In one part of his speech, Douglass specifically states,”The law gives the master absolute power over the slave.
The African Americans were “free” but were still being treated like slaves. They were given rights but had them taken away and were working for very little pay which was unfair compared to how whites were working for more. The blacks couldn’t even own a house or even rent unless they worked for a white man. They couldn’t even work unless it was for some white person or former owner. This is why reconstruction in the south after the civil war was a big
Although not every African American was a slave, slavery came to only be limited to people of African descent. Throughout the time of slavery, white people were worried that the slaves were going to rebel. Fearing that the slaves were gonna cause more trouble colonial authorities wrote slave codes. These slave codes prohibited slaves to own their own weapons, leave the plantation without permission and even meet in large groups. The slave rebelled up until slavery ended in 1865.
Slave owners only needed to supply an affidavit to a federal marshal to capture an escaped slave. Since no suspected slave was permitted trial, this led to many free African Americans being forced into slavery since they could not defend themselves against
Frederick Douglass, a historic civil rights activist, was born into slavery and fortunately lived long enough to see it end. He may have outlived the enslavement however, equality and direct freedom was not a result of Americanized slavery’s extinction. Douglass lived his post slavery life during the time of Jim Crow laws, enforced segregation laws. He wrote a letter to an unknown recipient, briefing describing the negative impact these laws had on blacks. Although slavery was abolished, it was believed that the act on dominance still played a big part on how whites treated blacks and still does today.
So when ships arrived in 1619 with African Americans the problem was solved, slaves seemed like a simple solution. Even though the Declaration of Independence states, “all men are created equal” a large group of people was ignored in this statement. While white Americans were free African American
Many slaves had to fight in the war to earn their freedom after the war. But many of the slaves were back into slavery. Many of the slaves escaped from slavery while some moved to Canada or New England, and others stayed to live in the South. Throughout the timeline African Americans were able to vote.
The last time I went to an AA meeting was about 6 or 7 years ago. At that time, my brother was having issues with both alcohol and drug use, and asked me if I would join him. I was felt very happy because after years of me trying to reach out to him, he finally reached out to me. I still remember when he received his golden chip for 10 months of sobriety. I must have attended about a dozen AA meetings with my brother.
