EOTO # 2 The Reconstruction Era Reaction

 EOTO # 2 REACTION

The Reconstruction Era was a critical period in the United States. This was right after the American Civil War, when Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House in 1865. It was a difficult time as the nation was rebuilding itself and redefining the concept of freedom for millions of enslaved African Americans. It was a time of great challenges as well as hope, struggle and political reform. 

In 1865, the Government established the Freedom Bureau. This agency was established to provide aid to the newly freed slaves. This Bureau played an important role in providing shelter, food, education and job training for formally enslaved individuals. 

In 1865, the Reconstruction Era saw the confirmation of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which abolished slavery throughout the United States. In 1868, the 14th Amendment granted citizenships and equal protection under the law to all individuals born or naturalized in the United States. In 1870, the 15th Amendment provided voting rights regardless of race, color or previous conditions of servitude. 

The Reconstruction Era was not without serious political and social upset especially in the South. First, most Southerners despised “Carpetbaggers”, which were Northerners who moved to the South after the war in efforts to get rich and acquire political power. Second, the rise of African American political representation challenged the white-dominated social and political order. This lead to the rise of the white supremacist organization like the Ku Klux Klan and the implement of Black Codes and Jim Crow laws, which put restrictions on African Americans.

The Compromise of 1877 marked the end of the Reconstruction era and the South regaining control of it’s own affairs. This happened with a political agreement where the Southern Democrats agreed to support the Republican candidate Rutherford B.Hayes, in the Presidential election in exchange for the removal of the federal troops from the South.

The Reconstruction Era was a period of hope and progress but also had conflicts of destruction due to the rise of segregation, voter suppression, and racism in the South. The struggle for equal rights would continue throughout the 20th century, leading up to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s. 

References:

www.study.com

www.history.com