The Reconstruction Period
- Nick Adams
- Jul 19, 2022
- 2 min read
The Reconstruction Period is an important time period when talking about Civil rights. The Reconstruction period happened after the American Civil War, where the Union army triumphed over the confederate army. After the Union won the war, there was a culture shock in America, with the south in ruins, and African Americans being freed, America officially entered the Reconstruction Period.
During the Reconstruction Period, President Johnson was in office, and held a strong view on his beliefs on how to rebuild America. President Johnson sided towards the southerners of the war, by offering general amnesty to southern white people who pledged a future loyalty to the U.S. government. President Johnson also gave out individual pardons to Confederate generals.
President Johnson also developed a plan that would allow southern white people the power to reclaim property by taking away the land that was given to African American people. President Johnson's plan also granted the southern states the right to start new governments with provisional governor. Even with the poor treatment of African Americans "Johnson’s plan did nothing to deter the white landowners from continuing to economically exploit their former slaves".
After Johnson's plan caused rage and uproar in congress, In the fall of 1866 congress held elections where northern voters were able to overturn Johnson’s policies. With Johnson's polices overturned Congress decided to begin a new Reconstruction the proper way. Congress passed multiple Acts that divided the South into five military districts and outlined how new governments, were supposed to be established. This new radical change in congress and in America marked the beginning of Radical or Congressional Reconstruction, which lasted until the end of the last Southern Republican governments in 1877.
Sources
Comments