In Exploring American History by __________, racial issues are a reoccurring problem which divide the United States. When white people began buying and importing African Americans as slaves, a stark division was created between the two races. Racial issues have divided the nation and citizens of the United States more than any other issue, occurring multiple times throughout history and still being seen today. Slavery was regarded as an important component of the United States’ economy and a larger contributor to the production of goods, especially in the South, where plantations depended upon thousands of slaves to grow and harvest their crops and maintain their houses and grounds. Slave owners were dependent on this “free” labor for their
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Although these former slaves were now free, they were denied their rights to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They were uneducated and did not have any property or money – making it extremely hard to start a new life with no income. Thus, they ended up in the same predicament they were in when they were enslaved. The white people struggled to understand that their “property” was now “people.” They felt stripped of their rights. The newly freedmen resented the white people in their community, while understanding they would still need assistance to remain alive through these hard …show more content…
The Fourteenth Amendment and Fifteenth Amendment followed, further defining this citizenship, granting all citizens equal protection under the law, and declaring all men the right to vote. Although, these legislations failed to grant the freedmen civil rights, meaning they still were not completely equal to white people. A good example of this was in the court case, Plessy v. Ferguson. This case ruled that African Americans’ rights and treatment was “separate but equal.” These events showed how the African American groups worked to close the gap between races while the white people placed roadblocks every chance they could. Throughout this time, Jim Crow laws were enforced in many states. These laws designated different accommodations for different races of people—white sections, and colored sections. Plessy v. Ferguson ruled that this treatment was fair, as long as there were the same accommodations for each race. This treatment, called segregation, continued in the United States for a majority of its
Although these former slaves were now free, they were denied their rights to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They were uneducated and did not have any property or money – making it extremely hard to start a new life with no income. Thus, they ended up in the same predicament they were in when they were enslaved. The white people struggled to understand that their “property” was now “people.” They felt stripped of their rights. The newly freedmen resented the white people in their community, while understanding they would still need assistance to remain alive through these hard …show more content…
The Fourteenth Amendment and Fifteenth Amendment followed, further defining this citizenship, granting all citizens equal protection under the law, and declaring all men the right to vote. Although, these legislations failed to grant the freedmen civil rights, meaning they still were not completely equal to white people. A good example of this was in the court case, Plessy v. Ferguson. This case ruled that African Americans’ rights and treatment was “separate but equal.” These events showed how the African American groups worked to close the gap between races while the white people placed roadblocks every chance they could. Throughout this time, Jim Crow laws were enforced in many states. These laws designated different accommodations for different races of people—white sections, and colored sections. Plessy v. Ferguson ruled that this treatment was fair, as long as there were the same accommodations for each race. This treatment, called segregation, continued in the United States for a majority of its