Southern White Supremacy and Black Civil Rights 1863-1877...

Having endured the brutality of slavery and the uncertainty of war, America’s blacks enjoyed a period of relative respite during the years 1863-1877. With slavery abolished, the South underwent reconstruction within every component of its unsteady structure. However, one must measure the success of this reconstruction with the criteria of political, social and economic changes in mind. The amendments of the 1860s gave blacks greater political freedom, but were only upheld by the military force of the Northern army; blacks developed their first education and religious institutions, but only within a segregated framework; and economically, the black population worked long, hard hours- though in†¦show more content†¦During the Reconstruction years of 1863-65, a considerable proportion of blacks occupied several Deep South governments. In Louisiana, for example, African-Americans made up 42% of the lower- and 19%- of the upper houses. However, these numbers do not accurat ely reflect the influence wielded by blacks in this period. Very few blacks held top positions, and in five Southern states no black whatsoever held a major office during reconstruction. Furthermore, one must recognise that this progression came about in an environment of intense pressure, in which any successful blacks were subject to white violence and widespread animosity. Furthermore, once in the house, the blacks found that they had far less speaking time- and thus far less influence- that their white counterparts. This was a matter of procedure: governmental power is inevitably measured by experience, of which the blacks had none- but it is important to note that the black politicians were operating in an environment that was far from equal. Thus, one can see that although blacks made considerable progress into politics, their development was cut short by white activity. Unequal influence inside- and violence outside- government ensured that the African-American politicians we re prevented from working effectively even in their limited posts. However, the fact that these people even had the remote chance ofShow MoreRelatedThe Compact Theory761 Words   |  4 Pagesbetween 1854 and 1858. Trent Affair - was an international diplomatic incident that occurred during the American Civil War Battle of Antietam 1862 - fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. Battle of Gettysburg 1863 - on June 24, 1863, General Robert E. Lee led his Confederate Army across the Potomac River and headed towards Pennsylvania. 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