Was Reconstruction Of America A Success Or Failure Essay

Superior Essays
Was the reconstruction of America a success or a failure? Some people might see reconstruction as a sucess, because of the different amendments that were signed to help free slaves and make everyone equal to each other or maybe they see sucess come from the Freedmen's Bureau which helped former slaves in the south get on their feet after the civil war. However even though these amendments and actions were definitely a good beginning of making everyone equal and bring everyone together, I think reconstruction was a failure. It wasn't really until the mid 1900s when things started to get better for African Americans. During the process of reconstruction America goes through three different president Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson, and …show more content…
During reconstruction we see the terrible violent actions from the KKK, because of the different beliefs that they had torwards the amendments passed and the actions that occured. The mississippi black codes also weren't a good thing. The black codes were laws passed in the south to prevent African Americans to have their freedom. Then there is the Jim Crow laws and the segragetion between the whites and the blacks. Where everyone is equal but different. So in the event of trying to reconstruct America back together after the civil war the examination of organizations forming like the KKK, the mississippi black codes, and the Jim Crow laws will determine that reconstruction caused more harm which suggests that reconstruction in America after the civil war was a failure.

Reconstruction was the idea of rebuilding America after the destruction of the civil war. Not only by fixing the physical damages like buildings and railroads, but also the minds and thoughts of the people. President Lincoln wanted to bring the North and the South back together again, so that everyone can move forward. Lincolns

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The Reconstruction period, which lasted from 1863 to 1877, is one of the most important time periods in American history. Reconstruction was about a country trying to heal after a bitter civil war. The country needed to decide where newly freed slaves fit in politically, socially, and economically. Because of the deep emotion involved after the Civil War, Reconstruction was one of the most divisive periods in American history. To help understand the time period and the division surrounding Reconstruction, there have been scholarly books that have covered this topic.…

    • 973 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The Civil War was over by 1865, however this four year long battle between the North and South caused wreckage throughout the country. To mend the broken ties, numerous ideas were proposed as plans to solve the issues mainly regarding how to incorporate former slaves to society. Nonetheless, the Reconstruction Era was mostly negative for African Americans. For example, according to Document 1 it states, “...before they whipped me they offered me $5000 if I would let another man go to legislature in my place.”…

    • 203 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    After the civil war was over, the North and the South started to execute a plan called the reconstruction. The goal of this was to reconcile the North and South, and to give freedmen (ex-slaves) rights and education. Everything was going really well, and the 13th and 15th amendments to the constitution were ratified, abolishing slavery and giving black men the right to vote. However, the reconstruction started to fall apart in the early 1870’s, and died in 1877.…

    • 448 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The late 1800s saw the rise and the fall of the Reconstruction era. The era, formerly sparked by President Abraham Lincoln during the ending of the Civil War, ended with President Rutherford B. Hayes’s call to withdraw northern federal troops from the South. According to Eric Foner, the author of Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877, the Reconstruction Era was clearly a failure due to the racism of the white South. While the original goal of the Reconstruction was to aid and improve the South and, in many aspects, it did, the Reconstruction failed with respect to racial equality.…

    • 335 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Civil War was the darkest and bloodiest period in American history with 620,000 lives lost. After it’s end America needed a period of rebuilding, Reconstruction. Reconstruction lasted throughout the U.S. from 1865 to 1877. Who, the North or South, put an end to America’s reassembly in 1877? The South killed Reconstruction through violent, political, and social conflicts.…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Reconstructions Failures The reconstruction was a failure. Rather than bringing the different races, North, and South together, the government made it look as though the union was going to change and it brought violence. The government brought new rules such as the black codes and sharecropping to unite the black and white. Violence comes in through the Ku Klux Klan or KKK and legacy of southern bitterness.…

    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    When Lincoln was inaugurated for a second term he put the 10% plan into use. This plan allowed the south to come back into the union if 10% of its voters pledged an oath of allegiance back into the union. Soon after this plan was put into use, Lincoln is assassinated and President Johnson is sworn into office. He ultimately favored Lincoln’s 10% plan and freely let the south back into the economy. All the African Americans wanted was to have freedom and get paid for the work they did.…

    • 759 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Reconstruction of the South The key objectives of Reconstruction were to readmit the South into the Union and to characterize the status of freedmen in American culture. The Reconstruction period was checked by political, not savage, clash. Some authentic myths are that the South was exploited by Reconstruction, and that the different arrangements of Reconstruction were degenerate and unjustifiable. Really, the arrangements were very lenient, upholding military principle for just a brief time of time, disregarding land reform, and conceding absolves effortlessly.…

    • 1596 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The primary successes of Reconstruction include: • Public education- organizations and individuals worked to improve literacy and education for African Americans • Freedom- The federal government outlawed slavery with the 13th Amendment, defined citizenship and protected all Americans under the law with the 14th Amendment and extended suffrage to all men in the 15th Amendment. • Freedmen’s Bureau-brought on food, clothing and education. The primary failures of Reconstruction include: • Kkk – to maintain white supremacy and intimidate black voters or any other whites who supported them • Black codes- voting restriction to suppress the right and opportunities of African Americans…

    • 101 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    1.) Two successes of the reconstruction of the south was a the newfound freedom for slaves and the unity of north and south. By 1877, the former confederate states had made new constitutions and accepted the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. This made it so every state had the same government views and ensure the south’s loyalty to the Union. A failure of the reconstruction era is the “new life” african americans were given even though they were considered free.…

    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In my opinion, given the early impacts of the Reconstruction up to 1877, I would consider Reconstruction to be a failure. Although, many great things came out of Reconstruction; the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, public school systems, etc. I believe that every time something good happened, something equally bad counteracted it. I feel that once the country made one step in the right direction, they took another step backwards. For example, once the Amendments were ratified, Southern states created the Black Codes, which further limited the freedman.…

    • 164 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    To firmly state, reconstruction has been an unresolved issue that people in the United States are still facing and questioning today. However, it was a great privilege for Abraham Lincoln to reconstruct the United States by putting an end to slavery and allowing the Southern and Northern States to reunite into the Union. Although, due to Lincoln being killed and Andrew Johnson taking his place (Reconstruction, Chapter 15, Section II, www.americanawp.com), the reconstruction ended with multiple failures such as the establishment of Black Codes, violence towards the African Americans, and the birth of Jim Crow Laws which all lead to white supremacy. One of the failures that resulted from reconstruction was laws known as Black Codes.…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Although Reconstruction had its successes it had many more failures. Reconstructions main purposes were to find out how to reintegrate the southern states after the Civil War back into the Union, and to protect the rights of the recently freed slave population. These problems were partially solved during the Reconstruction period mainly because there were a variety of attempts to solve the problems that weren't helping. An organization called the Ku Klux clan was created in the south(Schultz 2014, 276). "This white supremacy group along with The Southern Cross, and The Knights of White Camellia, were responsible for the deaths of countless freedmen"(Schultz 2014, 276).…

    • 358 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Reconstruction was one of the biggest failures in United States History. It was supposed to be one of the most important things to happen to the country after the Civil War, but due to the lack of good leadership, and difficulty of a good compromise between the Democrats and the Republicans, it became a lost cause. The failure of Reconstruction definitely did affect the recently freed African Americans and Republicans. The Civil War was one of the most important events in United States History.…

    • 831 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    New political forces in the South gave way for new changes. During reconstruction, African Americans made huge political gains. They voted in large numbers and were also elected to political office. African Americans were elected as sheriffs, mayors, legislators, Congressmen, and Senators. Even thought their participation was significant, it was exaggerated by white southerners angry at the Black Republicans governments.…

    • 1656 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays