The Reconstruction Era was a period of time from 1865 to 1877 about the rebuilding of the South and the establishment of rights for African Americans. This period marked a continuous battle of ideas for the nation’s future. Despite having its flaws, the Reconstruction was a success overall, The Reconstruction provided slaves freedom and citizenship with the amendments passed, gave black people access to education, and finally reunited the states.
During the Reconstruction, 3 amendments were passed. The first Civil Rights Amendment that was passed was the 13th Amendment. This Amendment was ratified in December of 1865, officially abolishing slavery. Prior to this Amendment, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, …show more content…
Both Andrew Johnson and Abraham Lincoln wished to bring back in the South without punishing them and with little conflict. Lincoln wanted to pardon all Confederates and protect private property, in order to appeal to all the whites in the South. Lincoln wanted everything to be over quickly and for the United States to be one, as it used to be. This was much to the anger of Radical Republicans, making them issue the Wade-Davis Bill to counter Lincoln’s Ten-Percent Plan. Lincoln was only able to pocket-veto the bill before he was assassinated, making Andrew Johnson president. During the “President Reconstruction” Johnson returned property to white southerners and issued hundreds of pardons to former Confederates, undermining the Freedmen’s Bureau in the process. In the making of their constitutions, Johnson agreed to accept the states, as long as they ratified the 13th Amendment and ended slavery. However, the Joint Committee on Reconstruction made stricter requirements for readmitting southern states. Not much longer after the acquittal of Andrew Jackson, Congress demanded that southern states redraft their constitutions, ratify the 14th Amendment, and give suffrage to blacks in order to get back into the Union. Republicans also passed the Second Reconstruction Act, putting Union forces in charge of registration. Congress later sent military troops into the seceded states as a way to speed up the …show more content…
It was certainly a step in the right direction. Laws were being created to protect the rights of African Americans, African Americans were earning positions in office, schools were being made of African Americans, and the United States were finally together as one. There was always a clash of ideas and concepts but, in the end, one trumped all: a new nation and a better future, for
During the Reconstruction, 3 amendments were passed. The first Civil Rights Amendment that was passed was the 13th Amendment. This Amendment was ratified in December of 1865, officially abolishing slavery. Prior to this Amendment, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, …show more content…
Both Andrew Johnson and Abraham Lincoln wished to bring back in the South without punishing them and with little conflict. Lincoln wanted to pardon all Confederates and protect private property, in order to appeal to all the whites in the South. Lincoln wanted everything to be over quickly and for the United States to be one, as it used to be. This was much to the anger of Radical Republicans, making them issue the Wade-Davis Bill to counter Lincoln’s Ten-Percent Plan. Lincoln was only able to pocket-veto the bill before he was assassinated, making Andrew Johnson president. During the “President Reconstruction” Johnson returned property to white southerners and issued hundreds of pardons to former Confederates, undermining the Freedmen’s Bureau in the process. In the making of their constitutions, Johnson agreed to accept the states, as long as they ratified the 13th Amendment and ended slavery. However, the Joint Committee on Reconstruction made stricter requirements for readmitting southern states. Not much longer after the acquittal of Andrew Jackson, Congress demanded that southern states redraft their constitutions, ratify the 14th Amendment, and give suffrage to blacks in order to get back into the Union. Republicans also passed the Second Reconstruction Act, putting Union forces in charge of registration. Congress later sent military troops into the seceded states as a way to speed up the …show more content…
It was certainly a step in the right direction. Laws were being created to protect the rights of African Americans, African Americans were earning positions in office, schools were being made of African Americans, and the United States were finally together as one. There was always a clash of ideas and concepts but, in the end, one trumped all: a new nation and a better future, for