Reconstruction Reconstruction to to

Jim CrowJim Crow

The South in Post Civil The South in Post Civil War EraWar Era

Main Idea…. (What to remember twenty years from now…)

While the bitter war

fought to preserve the union was won, the Reconstruction era would leave the US with many unresolved divisive issues for decades to come.

Why the War Was FoughtWhy the War Was Fought Economics:

85% to 90% of all businesses in the South were either plantation farms or supportive of plantation farming

Slavery labor made cotton plantation economically feasible

Cultural / Citizenship: Africans sees as lesser human

in the South Government:

The United STATESSTATES of America.

Results of the War (1861-65)Results of the War (1861-65)

Devastation in the SouthDevastation in the South 1 out of every 3 white males killed or

injured. 85% of war fought in the South

consequently….. Whole plantations, farms and cities

destroyed (70% a total loss) 1/3 of all livestock 9,000 miles of railroads destroyed 2/3 of the south’s shipping industry

With emancipation of slaves, plantation owners loss $3 billon in slave labor

Results of the War (1861-65)Results of the War (1861-65)

Not So Bad for NorthNot So Bad for NorthWhile loosing over 360,000 soldiers….

Hardly any territory destroyed (Gettysburg; parts of Maryland)

War effort produced a boom in heavy industry.

With victory won the political and moral high ground.

In the best financial position to “rebuild” the south.

THE BIG QUESTION…THE BIG QUESTION…

After 4 years of After 4 years of bitter conflict, how bitter conflict, how would the nation bring would the nation bring itself back together itself back together or…… “or…… “RECONSTRUCTRECONSTRUCT” ” itself? itself?

Reconstruction: The Second Civil War A PBS American Experience documentary

Constitutional AmendmentsThe 14th Amendment (1866) Declares former slaves to be citizens

of the United States and guarantees all citizens equal protection under the law.

Called the “Due Process” clause, it makes state governments the guarantors of “civil rights.”

Civil Rights = freedom of life, liberty or property

Thinking ahead: If that was the case, then why was the South segregated for over a hundred year after reconstruction?

Act II: Congressional Reconstruction

1515thth Amendment Amendment

Guarantees the right to vote cannot be denied because of race 1870.

Even before the 15th amendment was ratified, the military had begun to register freedmen under the Reconstruction Act of 1867.

In 1867 and 1868, voters in southern states chose delegates to draft new state constitutions…

80% of the newly registered African Americans went to the polls, while most registered white voters did not participate. (Why???) As a result, one quarter of the more than 1,000 delegates were black.

Then and Now… Question:

It would seem that combination of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments of the Constitution would create a racially equal south. Why did it not work out that way?

The End of Reconstruction A PBS American Experience documentary

The End of Reconstruction

Answers: Two factors which contributed to

the failure of Reconstruction:1) The KKK: terror and

intimidation 2) Corruption and ineffective

federal governanceThis leads to a “New” South that

looks like the Pre Civil War South

The End of Reconstruction

Reason 1: The KKK and Intimidation

Founded in 1866, Klu Klux Klan (KKK) members were largely of ex-Confederate officials and plantation owners wore robes

They works masks to symbolically represent the ghosts of Confederate soldiers

Klansmen pledged to “defend the social and political superiority” of whites against what they called “aggressions of an inferior race”

The End of Reconstruction

Spreading TerrorThe Klan’s goal:

intimidate scalawags, repel carpetbaggers, but most importantly, terrorize blacks into their place

Tactics included, horsemen in long robes and hoods appeared suddenly at night, carrying guns and whips.

They encircled the homes of their victims, and planted huge burning crosses in their yards.

People were harassed, tortured, kidnapped, or murdered

The End of Reconstruction

Reason 2: Government Ineffectiveness

Ulysses S. Grant, the great Union General elected President in 1868: while a great general, many historians consider to be one of the most highly ineffective Presidents

Grant’s administration, and the Republican Congress come to symbolize corruption, greed, and poor government

Supreme Court Limits Scope of AmendmentsIn Plessy v. Ferguson, the In Plessy v. Ferguson, the

Supreme Court narrowly Supreme Court narrowly interpreted the 14interpreted the 14thth amendments and created the amendments and created the “separate but equal doctrine. “separate but equal doctrine.

The Court’s decisions allow The Court’s decisions allow southern state to enact laws southern state to enact laws which violated the civil which violated the civil African Americans .African Americans .

S• In the late 1800s, Southern states began imposing

restrictions that, while not mentioning race, were designed to make it difficult or impossible for African Americans to vote.

• In 1890, Mississippi began requiring all citizens registering to vote to pay a poll tax of $2.

• Mississippi also instituted a literacy test, requiring voters to read and understand the state constitution.

Imposing Segregation (cont.)

• Other Southern states adopted similar restrictions, and the number of voters declined significantly.

• African Americans in the North were often barred from public places, but segregation in the South was far worse.

Imposing Segregation (cont.)

− Southern states passed Jim Crow laws.

− These laws established racial segregation in virtually all public places.

• In 1883, the Supreme Court set the stage for legalized segregation when it overturned the Civil Rights Act of 1875.

Imposing Segregation (cont.)

• In the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court set out a new doctrine of “separate but equal” facilities for African Americans.

The African American Response

Some African American leaders focused on practical vocational education, while others pushed for full civil rights and education opportunities.

• Between 1890 and 1899, there was an average of 187 lynchings each year.

• In 1892, Ida B. Wells launched a crusade against lynching.

• Mary Church Terrell fought a lifelong battle against lynching, racism, and sexism.

The African American Response (cont.)

− She helped found the National Association of Colored Women and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Section 5− She also formed the Women Wage-Earners

Association.

• Booker T. Washington proposed that African Americans concentrate on achieving economic goals rather than political ones.

• Booker’s Atlanta Compromise speech provoked a strong challenge from W.E.B. Du Bois, who saw no advantage to giving up civil rights, even temporarily.

The African American Response (cont.)

Sources:

Pro Quest Historic Study Center Reconstruction Study Guide

Reconstruction: The Second Civil War

A PBS American Experience documentary

Textbook: Chapter 3