From the end of the Civil War into the early twentieth-century, was Reconstruction a success or...

From the end of the Civil War into the early twentieth-century, was Reconstruction a success or a failure (or both) in its efforts to establish civil rights for African Americans?

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Reconstruction, was the period of time that followed the American Civil War and during which attempts were made to redress the inequities of slavery and its political, social, and economic legacy and to repair damage to the South caused by the civil war and to restore the Southern states to the Union. During this time, the efforts to establish civil rights for African Americans were both a success and failure due to the freedom of slaves and many other positive outcomes, but a failure since organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan was formed and many violent acts were performed.

positive events came from the reconstruction era. It was a success in the way of a new start and journey. It opened eyes and made African Americans actually want to fight for their rights and not just settle. The 13^th, 14^th, and 15^th amendment were passed and that a huge step in the right direction in efforts to establish civil right for African American (319). The best thing that came from the reconstruction era in many peoples’ eyes was the civil rights act of 1875 which happened in the “second” reconstruction (304). It was the last major piece of reconstruction legislation. It outlaws racial discrimination in public accommodations including hotels, transportation, and really almost places of business and things like that. It pushes the idea of equality about as far as you can go in nineteenth century America, into these private relationships of businesses and access to all these often private places. From here It began to seem like things kept going up for African Americans the civil rights movement of the 1950 and 60’s began in which black people are truly emancipated.

Reconstruction was a failure in the way that African Americans went through a lot of inhumane acts of violence while trying to fight for their civil rights. Though efforts to make things equal and just for African Americans were happening, there was still a color line between African Americans and the whites. (22) Inhumane acts were still happening and people were still suffering because of the color of their skin such as white man wanting to repress and using that as an excuse to murder African Americans (54) There were various degrees of what equality were in this time of day which were Natural, Political, Civil, and Social equality. People thought that because they had established the 13,14, and 15^th amendment things were equal or they had did enough for the African Americans. There were many systematic and social injustices made against the blacks just so they couldn’t succeed. Even when Plessy v. Ferguson was over the supreme courts opinion was that the case conflicted with the 13^th amendment(19-1) So, Though they were given these rights they would still continue to have to fight for rights. Though the amendments were a huge step toward justice and equality but they would still have a long road ahead of them. They went through a lot of inhumane things while fighting for their rights. There were many groups and organizations against them. For example the KKK was an organization that promotes hatred and discrimination against African Americans. Those types of organization were why reconstruction was a failure in efforts to establish civil rights for African Americans (2-5). There were a lot of white Northerners in 1866 and 1867, who were not at all certain they wanted to see black people as citizens and living with equality under the law. And of-course the black codes, the black codes were laws passed to control and restrict and constrain the lives of the freed people, essentially rendering them basically bondsmen again under law. These were vagrancy laws; these were laws against ex-slaves owning any property, laws against educating black people, laws against their mobility and so forth. The black codes themselves offended many white Northerners, because it seemed like that the very cause for which they had just fought the war was somehow now going up in smoke. After all of these unjust things were happening African Americans were still fighting for equality and for their rights.

Reconstruction and its efforts to gain civil rights for African Americans had its up’s and downs and its positives and negatives. Though many evil and unjust things happened in this time period many positive things came out of it as well.

Rahul Sunny answered 1 year ago

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