African Americans By The End Of The 19th And Early 20th Century

Examine the condition of African-Americans in the late nineteenth century and explain why the Thirteenth Amendment, the Fourteenth Amendment, and the Fifteenth Amendment, which were enacted to aid the new freedmen, actually did little.

The 14th amendment was ratified by the Supreme Court in 1868 granting numerous the African Americans citizenship, but with citizenship comes equality. The 14th amendment is split into five sections. Section one is the most important of them all and it states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the

African Americans have fought a great battle to become a part of society in America. Since being taken from African as slaves in the 1600’s there has been a continuous battle for equality since. Since the end of slavery Black Americans have had many accomplishments along with hardships. In this paper I will discuss some of the Major events in African American history beginning with the end of slavery which has lead to the America we know today.

Could you imagine the life as a Jew or African American when everything was against you? Certain races face inequality every day, but it was worse in the 1800s and 1900s. Many things can change the way we see or feel about someone. There are many different similarities and differences in the periods of oppression among African-Americans and Jews. Slavery began in the early 17th century, slaves were to do whatever their master told them.

In the 19th and 20th centuries Europe was thriving and wealthy while most of their colonies in Africa were suffering under their rule. The Europeans all wanted a piece of Africa’s land with its plentiful resources and free labor. Around this time, Europe was going through the industrial revolution and because business was booming the European countries need more resources than they already had. The Africans had the land the Europeans wanted to use to continue having booming businesses, they also had African slaves and workers that they can use so they don’t have to pay for labor. In the 19th century leader of the Europeans countries want to discuss how they will divide Africa without the leaders of Africa knowing. The Europeans then started to invade Africa and take control over the citizens. As the Europeans got more powerful, the Africans become more miserable. Unable to match the guns Europe had, African countries began getting claimed, one by one with the exception of two. The Europeans ruled in a cruel way that left many Africans dead or suffering. Many countries tried and successfully broke away from Europeans after many years under colonization. The Europeans had a negative impact on the lives of many Africans in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially with racism and assimilation. People were taught to be a human they had to be like a European which led to many racist views on African people and culture and is why some nations like France used assimilation to make

Minorities from the late 18th century to early 19th century faced an uphill battle when trying to gain equal rights. Many setbacks like the invention of the cotton gin, the trail of tears, and the constant fight for women’s suffrage held back Women, Native Americans, and African Americans. During this period of hardship, many of these groups still greatly contributed to America’s national identity and culture and helped each other out. Abigail Adams was the first lady during the turn of the century and fought for slave’s rights and women’s rights, Phillis Wheatley was a published African American woman who wrote about slavery, Sacagawea helped Lewis and Clark explore America, and many more minorities contributed to society and culture in America.

Once the Europeans were settled into the New World, they’ve decided to have a trade with Africans. Once, the Europeans traveled to Africa, they composed a trade with the Western Africans, to have their people, in return for gold. Many Africans, located in the West, were taken from their homes and families, into a ship to be taken far away into new land. This time in moment, in time, made a change throughout history.

For over 250 years blacks were faced with some of the most brutal hardships any American people had ever endured. They were brought to America to be slaves and work for the ones who bought them. For many, many years, blacks put up with the terrible treatment they were receiving with the hopes of a brighter day to come soon. The later half of the 19th century brought them the hope they were looking for. Blacks finally had a chance to gain the freedom some of them literally had been dying for for so long. This was made possible on January 1, 1863 when President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This executive order freed over 3 million slaves in the south that were in Confederate areas.

The life of African Americans in the 19th and 20th centuries has been a truly storied past. One of the most astonishing aspects of African American life, in this period, is the degree to which it was heterogeneous. The experiences of African Americans differed widely based on geographic location, class, gender, religion, and age. Despite a high degree of variability in the experiences of Blacks in America, if one were to consider the sociopolitical fact that Black people as a group in America were a subordinate caste in dominant society, then it becomes possible to make certain overarching connections. One such connection is the presence of secretive subversive ideologies and actions. The existence of these secretive subversive activities is apparent if one examines the labor tendencies, the folklore, and the outward societal projections of black people. By briefly examining the labor practices of Black women in Atlanta during the latter part of the 19th and early part of the 20th centuries, The Uncle Remus tales, and cultural icon Louis Armstrong, one can deduce that secretive subversive actions and beliefs were an integrated aspect of Black existence during this period.

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek” Barack Obama. The question is always asked does the media reflect the reality of society, or does society try and imitate the reality shown by the media? There are a number of stereotypes associated with African Americans in our society such as African American men are athletes, rappers, criminals, deviant, streetwise, uneducated, and unemployed just to name a few. African Americans in the media have changed through the years. The history of African Americans on TV or minorities in general is hampered by the racial conflicts and segregation that are embedded in American society. Historically, black actors have been grouped stereotypically and assigned to comedy. This has often been traced to the genre of black minstrelsy that was popular in the early 20th century.

In the early 19th century, the world was recovering from the French Revolution, and America was establishing itself as a country. Lewis and Clark ventured across the Louisiana Purchase, and Napoleon been bitterly defeated in the battle of Waterloo. The American people that had fought to so hard in the American Revolution to have their voices heard realized that they weren’t being heard in politics as much as they desired The founding fathers believed that the more educated would be better suited to make decisions. As America grew into an independent country which prided itself on democracy, the working class spoke up about their political ideas. They realized that the upper class made decisions to benefit themselves, rather than to benefit all.

For centuries Africa American’s have been stripped from their freedom, their history, and their human rights due to racism and white supremacy. However, in 1868 there was a light at the end of the tunnel, African Americans thought there was an end to racism and the beginning of equality when the 14th Amendment was created. The 14th Amendment stated, “All persons born in the United States are citizens of the United States… no state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”(The Founding Fathers) With the privilege of being a citizen a person is entitled to universal freedom (Walton, Smith). Even though the 14th amendment enforced that the state shall not deny privileges to citizens, it never brought about equality for African-Americans because of racism. The Amendment was intended to create equality, however its meaning was misinterpreted and ultimately benefit white males. Because of this, it denied them of their right to freedom from barriers created to keep African Americans inferior such as Jim Crow Laws, Gorilla Warfare for Voting, and Institutional Racism.

Thirty years following the abolishment of slavery in American, life was still harsh for those of African descent. African Americans began searching for a way out of the South; thus the cause of the Great Migration, the largest exodus of people in American history. With them, African Americans carried their hopes, dreams, and culture in hope of finding their own self-realization. The Emancipation Proclamation did not live up to the expectations America had hoped for, people were not truly free. Freedom, identity, claiming one’s citizenship were all the goals hoped to be achieved through the migration. The migration led many to New York where African Americans could be the people they had always imagined themselves to be. Here, they sought opportunity that had never been available. This was one of the most artistically fertile periods in African American history, known as the Harlem Renaissance. Races could commingle in ways that were illegal in much of the country.

During the nineteenth century, minority groups such as African Americans, Chinese, Mexicans, and Native Americans faced new struggles through means of oppression. Each of these minority groups handled this oppression differently because they each had very different experiences. Whether they came willingly, unwillingly, or were being pushed out of their own land, they were all treated as inferior by whites. To fight the oppression they were facing, they all created communities, fostered a sense of strength and independence, and used that to fight back.

On a date that will be remembered forever as a step forward for our nation, July 28, 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment became part of the U.S. Constitution. The Fourteenth Amendment gave a new sense of hope and inspiration to a once oppressed people. It was conceived to be the foundation for restoring America to its great status and prosperity. The Amendment allowed “equal protection under the law”, no matter what race, religion, sex, sexual preference or social status. It was designed to protect the newly freed slaves. However, it only helped the white race.