The Effects of the Civil War: Reconstruction & Civil Rights Amendments Chapter 23

Andrew Johnson Becomes President  Andrew Johnson was Vice President under

Lincoln in the 1864 election. After Lincoln’s assassination, Johnson becomes the President to handle Reconstruction  Johnson is a Democrat from the South

(Tennessee) who was pro-slavery, but a unionist . He was the only Southern senator not to resign his seat during the Civil War.

Reconstruction in the South  After the experience of “Total War”, the challenge was

how to rebuild the South  Another challenge was how to return the

Confederate states to the union/statehood  Finally, what to do about the former slaves =

“Freedmen”

Presidential Reconstruction Plan  Confederate states could rejoin the union if they…

1. Wrote a new state constitution 2. Elected a new state gov’t that respected federal authority 3. Repealed the act of secession 4. Canceled war debts (U.S. gov’t won’t pay) 5. Ratified the 13th Amendment= abolished slavery ** By fall of 1865- every southern state had met Johnson’s requirements & 13th Amend. became part of the Constitution

13th Amendment  Emancipation Proclamation- January 1863 issued by

Lincoln during the Civil War only freed slaves in Confederate States- not border states- southern states ignored the order  13th Amendment- ratified by states - December 1865  Made slavery illegal in all of the United States

Freedmen’s Bureau  Passed by Congress in March 1865  Designed to assist former slaves in becoming

functioning members of society- they had no money, property, or education. It also helped southern whites.  Provided food & medical care  Distributed some land to freedmen- protested by whites  Assisted freedmen in bargaining for wages and good working conditions  Most important legacy- education assistance and building of new schools

Black Codes  New government in South- headed by the same people as 

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before Civil War- white wealthy plantation owners Black Codes designed to counteract changes created by the 13th Amendment and Freedmen’s Bureau. Created to control former slaves (began in 1866 in Texas) African Americans were denied rights such as voting, serving on juries, or bearing arms The codes also restricted the freedmen to work mainly farm jobs Help planters find workers to replace slaves Keep freedmen inferior & at bottom of social order

14th Amendment • On July 9th 1868 the amendment was adopted that

granted African Americans & former slaves full civil rights  Johnson & Republican lawmakers were in conflict over the 14th Amendment – Johnson OPPOSED it!  Republicans win control of BOTH houses in Congress in the 1866 election- Congress controls reconstruction- shift in Southern power- to southerners loyal to the U.S.

Impeachment of Johnson  Johnson fought against the Radical Republicans in Congress over   

 

who would control Reconstruction Republicans passed two acts to limit the power of the President’s control over Reconstruction. Johnson violated the Tenure of Office Act by firing a federal official The House responded by impeaching the President and charged Johnson with the violation of the Tenure of Office Act and “bringing disgrace upon the high office of the President” for his opposition to the 14th Amendment. Johnson escaped removal from the presidency by only one vote in the Senate Johnson finished his term but his power was broken

Sharecropping System  Freedmen need land- no $ to buy it  Former slave owners need workers- no $ to pay them  Planters rented land to former slaves  Rent paid in cash or with crops from harvest  Farmers had to borrow $ for tools, food, and rent often at high interest rates- system led to more poverty & debt NOT improving conditions

15th Amendment  In 1869, with President Ulysses S. Grant’s

support, all citizens given right to vote regardless of race, color, or previous servitude  Women right activists angered- did not include them  Southern states used literacy tests and poll taxes to prevent African Americans from voting

Jim Crow Laws / Plessy vs. Ferguson  Jim Crow laws (1876) were designed to…

separate blacks and whites in public places  Challenged in Supreme Court after Homer

Plessy refused to obey Jim Crow Laws  Supreme Court in 1896 declared Jim Crow laws

were Constitutional and did NOT violate the 14th Amendment as long as the facilities were equal.

Ku Klux Klan  Resentment of Reconstruction- illegal/ unjust  White Southerners from Tennessee form a secret

club  Used violence, terror & murder to frighten AfricanAmerican, white Republicans and public officials  Their main purpose was to prevent African Americans from voting and entering politics.  1870-1871 laws passed that made it a crime to interfere with elections or deny protection of citizens  By 1870s Klan not longer a major threat  The KKK still exists today- White Supremacist