Andrew Johnson Discrimination

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Abraham Lincoln produced the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all black people from slavery. He was later assassinated on April 14, 1865, days after speaking of giving blacks the right to vote. Now, Andrew Johnson being the vice president was sworn into office the day Lincoln was murdered. He had a different perspective on black futures. Johnson was a racist, he wasn’t quiet about it by any means and didn’t care who knew. He had previously been a Southerner, so he leaned towards the Confederate side during his time in office. “His vision was of a South in which the old planter elite would share power with their natural allies, the white yeomen, and in which blacks, though nominally free, would be relegated to second-class, peasant status” …show more content…
He spoke his mind loud and clear for everyone to hear. Andrew Johnson believed he was fulfilling Lincoln’s prophecies, but he was tearing the country down piece by piece. He was pulling The United States apart while trying to fix it’s problems. Johnson tried to take away simple rights that every American should have. He would block efforts of full equality for African Americans in the Southern states. His racism towards black equality made him “concerned” because blacks wanted their own independence and respect. In the fall of 1865, after The Civil War had ended, Johnson ordered all land be given back to the former white owners. He did not believe that the land had been conquered and thought that everything should be given back to the respectable owners. These ridiculous laws forced blacks to get contracts to stay on the plantations as labor workers. Johnson had gone crazy at this point and had vetoed civil right bills that protected all people despite nationality and race. This bill was eventually passed and Andrew Johnson was …show more content…
Andrew Johnson was not the best president for this time period, he did not care about everyone, but only for himself. If I had been alive during the Reconstruction process I would have tried to comprehend everyone 's ideas and take bigger steps in changing racism throughout the country. I feel as if the freed slaves should have been given a certain amount of money and a place to stay after being freed. It would have helped them back on their feet, knowing they had some kind of independence. The ending of slavery seemed as if it wasn’t a big deal, no one cared, not even the president. If my plans had worked, racism would not be a huge problem in this day of age. Yes, people are stuck in their ways, but African Americans would have been welcomed, not threatened with Back Codes. There would be no segregation and separate sitting areas, drinking fountains, or racial controversies. Everyone would accept each other for who they are. Andrew Johnson tore the country apart, before it had even truly come

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