After the conclusion of the American Civil War, and the passing of the Fourteenth Amendment, African Americans were free from bondage under federal law. The Southern states attempted to limit the freedom of the African Americans in a number of ways. Even though the old name of slavery was not used any longer, the society that emerged after the Civil War closely resembled pre-Civil War society due to the racial divisions that still existed in Southern society. African American children had to quickly learn to adapt to their surroundings in order remain safe from white retaliation. They had to learn everyone had a place in society and the rich, white men controlled everyone’s place. Also, they had to learn to retain their anger and hatred,
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Rich, white Southerners decided who was to succeed and who would not. As Richard R. Wright Jr. learned from the reading about the Dred Scott Decision, in the eyes of the whites, there were two types of African Americans: the acceptable blacks, who accepted the principle that black men had no rights that white men were required to respect, and the unacceptable blacks, who wanted white men to respect their rights. Even though there were two different “types” of African Americans, both types were controlled, rigidly, from the top of Southern society, the rich, white Southerners. This can be illustrated in the story of Charlie Holcombe, a tobacco farmer, from North Carolina, whose sole existence depended solely on the willingness of the white man. White men used strict control to limit his income, and many white business owners cheated him out of money. With the majority of the southern African American population being illiterate, many white business owners were able to cheat African Americans economically because using a legal action, on behalf of the African Americans was impossible. The rich, white men set up a system that was able to keep African Americans from making legitimate legal claims, thus ensuring their …show more content…
However, African American children quickly learned asking any questions about segregation, racism, and abuse lead to their parents reprimanding them for asking such a question. Many children would ask their parents about why they could not do a certain activity or say certain things, and their parents response, most of the time, was to tell them not to ask so many questions. These were uncomfortable topics for the parents because they too had experienced great racism and abuse. By attempting to keep their children innocent, by not discussing racial issues, would help their children stay happier and enjoy life a little longer than they had when they were children. Some children attempted to turn to God to answer their questions, but the ministers in the church’s did not want to talk about race as much as the children’s parents. For African American children, an important lesson to learn was to never ask questions about any race issue because asking a question would only produce backlash from the
Rich, white Southerners decided who was to succeed and who would not. As Richard R. Wright Jr. learned from the reading about the Dred Scott Decision, in the eyes of the whites, there were two types of African Americans: the acceptable blacks, who accepted the principle that black men had no rights that white men were required to respect, and the unacceptable blacks, who wanted white men to respect their rights. Even though there were two different “types” of African Americans, both types were controlled, rigidly, from the top of Southern society, the rich, white Southerners. This can be illustrated in the story of Charlie Holcombe, a tobacco farmer, from North Carolina, whose sole existence depended solely on the willingness of the white man. White men used strict control to limit his income, and many white business owners cheated him out of money. With the majority of the southern African American population being illiterate, many white business owners were able to cheat African Americans economically because using a legal action, on behalf of the African Americans was impossible. The rich, white men set up a system that was able to keep African Americans from making legitimate legal claims, thus ensuring their …show more content…
However, African American children quickly learned asking any questions about segregation, racism, and abuse lead to their parents reprimanding them for asking such a question. Many children would ask their parents about why they could not do a certain activity or say certain things, and their parents response, most of the time, was to tell them not to ask so many questions. These were uncomfortable topics for the parents because they too had experienced great racism and abuse. By attempting to keep their children innocent, by not discussing racial issues, would help their children stay happier and enjoy life a little longer than they had when they were children. Some children attempted to turn to God to answer their questions, but the ministers in the church’s did not want to talk about race as much as the children’s parents. For African American children, an important lesson to learn was to never ask questions about any race issue because asking a question would only produce backlash from the