The first question, do you think that slaves and African-Americans purposefully took advantage of the war to better their status in American society? What evidence is there supporting the idea of African-Americans taking advantage of the war to better their status.
Frank Smith Jr. offers one piece of evidence to African-Americans taking advantage of the war. This Frank Smalls, a former slave, who escaped on the CSS Planter and sailed to the Union lines. Mr. Smalls received prize money from the ship, thus he took advantage of the war to better himself. After the war, he purchased his former master’s property. He served as a Representative of South Carolina. Mr. Smalls purposefully took advantage of the war to better his status in American society.
Black leadership as mentioned in Richard Lowe’s article was strongly influenced by Union military officers, but this doesn’t exclude the notion of African-Americans from taking advantage of the war. Lowe writes, “… newly enfranchised African Americans in many cases had their own ideas about who should lead them.” This statement coincides with how 24 black delegates to the 1867-1868 constitutional convention. These men “were elected by overwhelmingly black votes.” This is clear indication of the …show more content…
The Civil War was able to empower the African American population to better their status in American society. This war freed slaves and opened the shortened window of opportunity for the free and former slave populations. The Civil War cannot be expanded upon the post war issues and developments other than to critique or criticize the Reconstruction. The impact upon the African American population due to the war is directly related to the white southern population that lost, but a disconnect happens as the next step in the civil rights fight begins following the end of the
Frank Smith Jr. offers one piece of evidence to African-Americans taking advantage of the war. This Frank Smalls, a former slave, who escaped on the CSS Planter and sailed to the Union lines. Mr. Smalls received prize money from the ship, thus he took advantage of the war to better himself. After the war, he purchased his former master’s property. He served as a Representative of South Carolina. Mr. Smalls purposefully took advantage of the war to better his status in American society.
Black leadership as mentioned in Richard Lowe’s article was strongly influenced by Union military officers, but this doesn’t exclude the notion of African-Americans from taking advantage of the war. Lowe writes, “… newly enfranchised African Americans in many cases had their own ideas about who should lead them.” This statement coincides with how 24 black delegates to the 1867-1868 constitutional convention. These men “were elected by overwhelmingly black votes.” This is clear indication of the …show more content…
The Civil War was able to empower the African American population to better their status in American society. This war freed slaves and opened the shortened window of opportunity for the free and former slave populations. The Civil War cannot be expanded upon the post war issues and developments other than to critique or criticize the Reconstruction. The impact upon the African American population due to the war is directly related to the white southern population that lost, but a disconnect happens as the next step in the civil rights fight begins following the end of the