The Civil War
The Civil War ended on April 9, 1865, and the original goal of the North to preserve the Union was accomplished. The task that lay before Lincoln and Congress was to reintegrate the rebellious Southern states into the Union. For many white southerners “Reconstruction was a vicious and destructive experience – a period when vindictive Northerners inflicted humiliation and revenge on a pro-state South.”
After you have completed your readings, post your response to the following questions:
Were the Black Codes another form of slavery?
Sample Solution
The Black Codes were a series of laws passed by Southern states immediately following the Civil War in an attempt to maintain white supremacy and control over newly freed African-Americans. In many ways, they functioned as an extension of slavery and can be seen as another form of oppression.
The Black Codes systematically restricted the rights of African-American citizens in a variety of ways. They limited what kinds of work freedmen could do, where they could live, how much compensation they would receive for their labor and even what types of activities they were allowed to engage in within their communities. For example, vagrancy laws required that anyone without a job had to pay a fine or go to jail; this was primarily used against former slaves since it was very difficult for them to find employment due to racial discrimination. Other regulations prevented African-Americans from carrying guns, testifying against whites in court cases, buying land or entering into contracts with any person other than those who employed them. These laws also reaffirmed the legality of aspects such as convict leasing which had been one of the key methods used by plantation owners prior to Emancipation Proclamation to keep enslaved people under control During Reconstruction period state governments passed these restrictive codes in order deny basic civil liberties guaranteed by federal law including voting rights . Thus these codes led indirectly towards Jim Crow Laws which further reinforced racism in South (Weise2015).
The enforcement structure used during slavery—which included local police forces along with vigilante groups—were still utilized while enforcing the Black Codes and made sure that African Americans remained both economically dependent on white landowners and powerless politically throughout much of the Reconstruction period (Stultz 2011). Moreover segregationist policies adopted by new southern government maintained social inequality through preventing education ,employment opportunities ,land ownership etc amongst black population .Therefore it is evident that Black codes served as another form oppressive system which kept former slave population subjugated after emancipation thus making it hard differentiating between pre-war slave life and post war freedom(Ginzberg 2000)
In conclusion , The rigid regulations placed upon African Americans via black codes had many parallels with earlier forms oppression inflicted upon them during slavery henceforth its safe say that black code were yet another form modern day enslavement implementing all means necessary preserve white supremacy .
