1. THE PERIOD FOLLOWING THE CIVIL WAR 1865-1877 Reconstruction of the United States of America

2. Reconstruction was the period of rebuilding the South after the Civil war. It provided a lot of opportunities for African Americans and reinforced new Constitutional Amendments that granted voting rights and equal rights to former slaves. Reconstructing the Nation

3. THE END OF THE CIVIL WAR THE SOUTH Suffered massive destruction. Plantations/farms were in ruins and slaves had been freed. Bitterness and resentment toward the North. Newly Freed Americans! Nearly 4 million slaves freed. Many dislocated after war. Had been denied education. Freedman’s Bureau created by US Gov’t to help newly freed people.

4. Reconstruction During the period of Reconstruction, many Black Colleges were established throughout the former Confederate States.

5. RIGHTS FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS

6. Reconstruction of Lincoln and Johnson Both President Lincoln and President Johnson proposed lenient (easy) plans to allow Southern States to be readmitted to the Union. They did not want to create any more anger between the two sides. Controlled Congress Wanted to punish the South and enforce rights for African Americans 1867—Placed US troops in the South to run and monitor Reconstruction. Radical Republicans Take Over Reconstruction Radical Republicans Say NO!!!

7. Military Reconstruction Act As part of this act, the South was divided into five military districts. These districts were monitored and assessed to determined if states could be re-admitted to the Union.

8. A small window of advancements

9. ELECTION OF 1876 The Election of Hayes: Of the two candidates who ran for the Presidency, neither received a majority of electoral votes. The House of Representative gave all disputed votes to Hayes. THE COMPROMISE OF 1877:Hayes winning made the North happy but the South mad. To please the South all Federal troops were removed from the South. When Federal Troops were removed from the South Reconstruction ends and the majority of advancements for African Americans end with it. RECONSTRUCTION ENDS IMPACT OF COMPROMISE OF 1877

10. BLACKS ARE DENIED THE RIGHT TO VOTE Poll Taxes: Blacks were required to pay to vote. This was usually much higher than whites. Literacy Tests: Blacks were required to read difficult texts prior to voting. Since most were barred from learning to read during slavery times, few had reading abilities. Many whites also did not know how to read, however, they were given easier text and helped by voting administrators. Grandfather Clause:You were only allowed to vote if your grandfather could vote. Since no newly Freedmen had a grandfather or parent who could vote, they could not meet this requirement. Tenant Farming and Sharecropping become the new forms of slavery. Blacks had little education or money to start a new life. Many were forced to continue to work on farms for no pay. Sharecroppers had to give most of their crop to the landowner and then got to keep a little to sustain life. Tenant farmers worked the land as rent payments. Without income African Americans in the South had no way to improve their lives, buy their own land, or seek an education. A NEW FORM OF SLAVERY FEW OPPORTUNITIES

11. Separating Blacks and Whites These were laws that legally segregated (separated) whites and Blacks in all aspects of life. This was further enforced in 1896 with the Supreme Court Case Plessy v Ferguson where the Court upheld that “separate but equal” was legal. This would later be overturned in 1954 with the case Brown v. the Board of Education. JIM CROW LAWS Separate but Equal?