The Challenges Of African Americans After The Civil War

After the Civil War, African Americans were free from slavery but they still faced many harsh realities. The “Address of a convention of Negroes held in Alexandria Virginia” and “Plessy vs. Ferguson [1896]” show how things did not change too much through time. The African Americans in Alexandria, Virginia believed that African Americans would face another form of slavery if the Federal Government did not step in and grant laws that provided them with rights as citizens, civil rights. Thirty-one years later, the Plessy vs. Ferguson case showed that the Federal Government had no interest in granting African Americans civil rights. Supreme Court Justice Harlan believed that the Court decision would not bring the races together socially. African Americans were intent on gaining civil rights. In the “Address of a convention of Negroes held in Alexandria Virginia”, African Americans explained that they had a right to be granted civil rights. They believed that they should have civil rights because they helped the Union fight in the Civil War. They risked their lives to help fight for the cause, and they believed that should have granted them access to gaining civil …show more content…
They believed that former Confederacy advocates were trying to force them into another form of slavery. African Americans were convinced that the only way for them to remain safe in this country was for the Federal Government to pass laws to force the rebels to include African Americans. They wanted the Federal Government to use the military to stay and help protect them until an amendment was made that “prohibit[ed] the States from making any distinction between citizens on account of race or color” (“Address”). They also thought that having the right to vote would equip them to help themselves and help sway things in their favor. If they could influence the polls, they could influence the laws that were made in their state