THE PROMISE OF RECONSTRUCTION AND THE NADIR, 1877-1923

United States History

The Civil War and Its Impact

The Civil War was largely fought over the issues of states’ rights, popular sovereignty, and spread of slavery in the U.S. States’ Rights – the powers reserved for the

states rather than the federal government Popular sovereignty – political theory that

government is created by and subject to the will of the people

Territories had to be admitted to the Union as either free (no slavery) or as slave states

The Civil War and Its Impact

The Civil War was from 1861 – 1865 The Northern States (Union) defeated the

Southern States (Confederacy) It was the deadliest war in American

history, killing over 620,000 Victory for the North meant the end of the

Confederacy and of slavery in the United States and strengthened the power of the federal government

It ushered in the Reconstruction Era

Reconstruction

Reconstruction addressed how the 11 southern states that seceded (left) from the Union and formed the Confederacy would be re-admitted to the United States of America

This process included Physically rebuilding the South Restoring the South to the Union via loyalty

oaths & suffrage Determining rights and citizenship for

African Americans

The Promise of Reconstruction Radical Republicans helped to pass the

13th, 14th, & 15th Amendments (the Reconstruction Amendments) which drastically improved the lives of African Americans 13th Amendment – abolished slavery 14th Amendment – made all African

Americans (& Native Americans) citizens of the United States

15th Amendment – granted voting rights regardless of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude”

The Promise of Reconstruction In addition to the Reconstruction

Amendments, the Radical Republicans also helped to create the Freedman’s Bureau – aided freed slaves

through legal food and housing, education, health care, and employment

Elected Office holders – over 630 African Americans were elected to the Senate and the House of Representatives

Redemption

Once they regained the ability to vote, many white southerners became redeemers fought against Reconstruction, using both political and violence means

These redeemers were instrumental in creating Black Codes – state legislation which controlled the

labor, migration, and activities of African Americans Ku Klux Klan (KKK) – a white supremacist para-

military organization known for their violent repression of African Americans

The Failure of Reconstruction While the promises of Reconstruction for

African Americans gave them equality briefly, overall the programs of Reconstruction was a utter failure. This ushered in the Nadir (lowest point) for American race relations

As a result of this failure of Reconstruction, a new era of race relations was ushered in – Jim Crow – which created a system of legal racial segregation (separation by race) in public and private facilities de jure segregation – by law, usually in the South de facto segregation – by fact, usually in the North

Jim Crow America

Jim Crow existed from 1876-1965 in both the North and the South

Named after caricature of blacks performed by whites in blackface

The term Jim Crow became synonymous with Negro and racial segregation

Jim Crow America – Disfranchisement

From 1890 to 1908, white conservative Democrats passed legislation and constitutional amendments across the South to disfranchise (deny the right to vote) most African Americans

They used a combination of restrictions on voter & voting methods like poll taxes literacy tests residency requirements

Jim Crow America - Violence

Violence, and the threat of violence, was a significant part of enforcing Jim Crow laws

Besides the work of the KKK, mobs of white men often lynched African Americans illegally

Lynching involved hanging, disfiguring and, usually, burning the victim to death

Jim Crow America - Accommodations

The case, Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), established the basic principle of Jim Crow America, “separate but equal”

The “separate but equal” clause was the rule of law in America until the Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954

The Fight Against Jim Crow

Though this period is considered the Nadir for African Americans, many organized against Jim Crow and fought for their rights, eventually culminating in the modern Civil Rights Movement (1954 -1970) Ida B. Wells – Barnett W.E.B. Du Bois Booker T. Washington

Ida B. Wells - Barnett

Educated at Fisk University, Ida B. Wells was a journalist and newspaper editor who tirelessly exposed lynchings in the South

She was also active in the women’s rights movement

William Edward Burghardt Du Bois As the 1st African

American to receive a PhD from Harvard, Du Bois later founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

A sociologist and author, he became a dominate figure in the African American community

Booker T. Washington

A former slave and self made man, Washington founded the Tuskegee Institute to train African Americans in the trades and agriculture

An author and politician, he became a dominate figure in the African American community

Philosophical Differences between Du Bois and Washington

W.E.B. Du Bois Believed in demanding

rights for African Americans

The Talented Tenth, an educated elite, would lead Black America

Coined the idea of double consciousness – all Blacks live in 2 worlds (one black, one white)

Outlined his philosophy in The Souls of Black Folk

Booker T. Washington Believed in

accommodation – blacks would not ask for the vote or equal rights & would tolerate segregation and discrimination until whites were ready to give African Americans their rights

Outlined his philosophy in Up From Slavery