Reconstruction in America (1865-1871)
What were the limits of Reconstruction in the United States from 1865 – 1871? Reconstruction was the period in American history following the Civil War until 1877. The country was in the process of repairing the damages and bringing in the former slave population into the constituency. A series of laws and amendments were passed in attempt to accomplish this lofty goal. The three pieces in particular are the Reconstruction amendments, the Reconstruction Acts, and the Freedman’s Bureau Bill. My argument is that Reconstruction failed due to the limits written into the law preventing the establishment of the freed slaves as equal citizens.
The largest laws in scope were the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments …show more content…
As a whole, these three amendments contain no glaring issues in their dealing with the issue of bringing in the new population. However, the local governments just ignored them, and kept the freed blacks ignorant. These amendments did not have written in major limits to their effectiveness by their drafters. Still, these amendments relied upon Congress passing and enforcing appropriate legislation at that time, and future Congressional sessions keeping those laws in …show more content…
After its military backing was pulled out, only the former Confederate states had the real power in these matters. According to Foner, the laws did not change society, nor give it a reason to accept the principles within the laws. The strong pushback from Southern society in conjunction with waning support from the North doomed these laws instead of flaws written into them. Foner’s point on this topic: “…by the turn of the century, white public opinion had abandoned the egalitarian vision of citizenship spawned by the Civil War, and had revived definitions of American freedom and nationality based on race” is valid and come with solid
What were the limits of Reconstruction in the United States from 1865 – 1871? Reconstruction was the period in American history following the Civil War until 1877. The country was in the process of repairing the damages and bringing in the former slave population into the constituency. A series of laws and amendments were passed in attempt to accomplish this lofty goal. The three pieces in particular are the Reconstruction amendments, the Reconstruction Acts, and the Freedman’s Bureau Bill. My argument is that Reconstruction failed due to the limits written into the law preventing the establishment of the freed slaves as equal citizens.
The largest laws in scope were the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments …show more content…
As a whole, these three amendments contain no glaring issues in their dealing with the issue of bringing in the new population. However, the local governments just ignored them, and kept the freed blacks ignorant. These amendments did not have written in major limits to their effectiveness by their drafters. Still, these amendments relied upon Congress passing and enforcing appropriate legislation at that time, and future Congressional sessions keeping those laws in …show more content…
After its military backing was pulled out, only the former Confederate states had the real power in these matters. According to Foner, the laws did not change society, nor give it a reason to accept the principles within the laws. The strong pushback from Southern society in conjunction with waning support from the North doomed these laws instead of flaws written into them. Foner’s point on this topic: “…by the turn of the century, white public opinion had abandoned the egalitarian vision of citizenship spawned by the Civil War, and had revived definitions of American freedom and nationality based on race” is valid and come with solid