Were African Americans Free During Reconstruction

During the reconstruction ex-slaves were trying to find their true definition of freedom. After spending hundreds of years in slavery, African Americans had become more dependent on their slave owners after the signing of the emancipation proclamation that freed slaves in the south on January 1st 1863. After the freeing slaves didn't know what to really do with themselves having all the family they've ever had on the plantation and No land to raise their families on so, the slave owners offered them their homes on the plantation and maybe a few pennies a day earned for the task that was previously assigned to them during slavery, but this isn't freedom. After the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 all slaves in the South were supposed to be

Hundreds, maybe thousands, African Americans died from whites lynching them during reconstruction. The 13th amendment (freed slaves), 14th amendment ( equal rights), and the 15th amendment (gave all male people the right to vote) were created during reconstruction to give African Americans equal rights. Rutherford Hayes was elected president. …the slave went free; stood a brief moment in the sun; then moved back again toward slavery. W.E.B. Dubois" (Background Essay).

Where the blacks really free after the civil war? NO, not quite there were Jim Crow laws- separation of colored and whites segregation, that was a huge problem it made conflict between black and whites and the whites disrespected the colored in many different ways. Black codes were a big problem as I explained in the last paragraph they basically make different raced people not able to vote. The government was trying to create obstacles for them at the time and treated them unfairly if the 14th Amendment States that all people of any race in the U.S are citizens.Later the slaves fought back, the U.S Supreme court case established the “Separate-But-Equal” doctrine. It made black and whites go to separate schools and still have the same education.Blacks also had to sit in the back of city buses and whites had reserved “white only seats’’ and if there were no seats left up front someone from the back of the bus would have to leave.But one day, a black women named Rosa Parks wouldn’t leave her seat when there wasn’t enough seats for the white man and got sent to

African Americans were free during the Reconstruction time. During the Reconstruction time from 1865 to 1877, When the nation tried to build itself after the Civil War, Congress passed three Amendments called the Reconstruction Documents.Which were the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments passed to the US Constitution. These documents were created to give fair and equal rights to all races, ethnicities, man, and woman. In the 13th Amendment it states, “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction” (para. 1). Furthermore Amendment 14 states,

Blacks in the North partially free. [Document B is an excerpt from a book by an Englishman, named Charles Mackay about his tour through the United States and Canada from 1857-1858. His book, Life and liberty in America: or sketches of a tour in the united States and Canada, is about the freedoms and limitation that the African Americans in the north had.] According to doc B which states that” he shall be free to live, and to thrive, if he can, and to pay taxes and to perform duties.” African Americans could live and thrive.African Americans were able to live and thrive so they weren’t slaves any longer which was good because they were free to do as they needed to.

After the Civil War African-American expected to have their freedom, but this was not really the case. Even though the approval of the 13th Amendment freed them from their Southern masters, they were still far from being free. The 13th amendment to the United States Constitution provides that

African Americans living in the North, as well as those in the South, faced multiple challenges. In 1860, tension grew between the North and South. Most southern states still held onto slavery, because their slaves were worth money, while the North was trying to abolish it. The North had many free African Americans, but the question is, were they actually free? Free Africans Americans in the North before the civil war were not actually free because, they had little to none political right, they were not allowed to associate with whites, and making a living, no matter what, was hard.

The Reconstruction Period was the time after the Civil War when The United States government was trying to reunite the North and South, as well as integrate the free slaves. When the troops left in 1877 everything started to go downhill. The United States government made laws to help integrate the freed slaves called Pig Laws and “Black Code”. These laws were definitely geared towards pleasing the Southern people because they were made by the Southern State Legislature. These laws did give free slaves some freedom, but still highly restricted them.

Freedom is not being controlled by others and having the rights that others have. African American slaves were pushed and motivated toward this goal, this was the ultimate dream during the Reconstruction period. Reconstruction period was a time in U.S history that spanned from 1865 to 1877, this period was triggered when the civil war ended and the period ended due to the Compromise of 1877. This essay will provide evidence that African Americans were free during the Reconstruction period of the United States.

African Americans were set free after the Civil War. After the Civil War the freedom of African American was really vague. Although they were set free they really weren't free. White people would say

To be free means you have freedom and certain rights without anyone interfering with you. You can also do things at your own will. However, during Reconstruction African Americans were not free because whites abused the fact that they had rights and would overpower them. One example is the Ku Klux Klan.

Were African Americans free during Reconstruction? After the Civil War in 1865 and for the next 17 years America was in Reconstruction, during this time period African Americans were referred to as freedmen and women or negroes. Many important things happened during these 15 years, one of them being the 13th Amendment being passed stating that all men were free (Doc. A). The definition of freedom is, the ability to do whatever you want and control your own actions, without external pressure. So were African Americans really free?

Back before the Civil war started, African Americans were slaves, and when we were younger or were children, we were told that Abraham Lincoln freed slaves, but how were they treated after the war. During the time of the reconstruction of the US after the war? I would have to say both yes and no based one the documents provided. They we able to vote, they were able work and be paid, they had the chose to do whatever they want with their lives; but some only knew what they could do, this allowed previous slave owners to make money and put them in debt.

History helps shape the future and what we can learn from it to make sure that we do not repeat the same mistakes. During Reconstruction, the country was trying to make amends after the war was over. The country needed to find a way to mend a broken nation because it was divided. The main issue during reconstruction was the status of African Americans because they wanted their civil rights, but could not get that. The question that needs to be answered is: who did the most to aid the cause of African American during Reconstruction, and why? Many organizations and people helped African Americans, but the Freedman’s Bureau did the most.

During reconstruction, the meaning of freedom suited many different types of interpretation; the perception of freedom between former slaves and their slaves masters were very contradictory. To begin with, African-Americans had suffered severe abuse over those years of slavery, so to them, the meaning of freedom was basically a hope that in the future, they won’t experience all kind of punishment and exploration that they have been experienced so far. Besides that, formers slaves were demanding equal civil and political rights. In the same way, they valued their freedom by establishing their own schools and churches, reuniting families that were separated under