Despite the passing of the 13th Amendment, we learned in class that the Southerns tried everything they could to refrain for changing their environment.Though the midst of chaos, Lincoln was assassinated in 1865 which was a major setback and obstacle during the transition period from slavery to freedom. In class, we talked about his successor, Andrew Johnson, and the pain in the rear he was during this transition.
Though the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, there was no protections or definitions of rights for freedom. This meant that it was easy for Southerners to bend the rules. In response to the 13th Amendment, Southerners tried to re-institute slavery through other means by making it difficult for people to get jobs forcing them to go back to the plantations they worked at before for very little pay. In order to prevent Southerners from happening, Civil Rights Acts, and Black Codes were created to enable a protection of the free black man. Though it was hard to enforce in the South, the North tried their best. Freedmen's Bureau was another example where the Union tried to ensure that black men had the same opportunities as white men. Freedmen's Bureau was an organization that set up schools, aid stations, and things that black people were deprived of. Johnson, not agreeing with the need to help aid freed blacks vetoed the Civil Rights Act, and Freedmen's Bureau. Even though he vetoed it, Congress overrides his veto with strong feeling for the need of reconstruction in the South. Easily, it can seen that Johnson and the members of Congress were not on the same page.
The main step that Congress took in order to create peace and balance between freed blacks and the white plantation owners in the South was to reconstruct the South. Before Lincoln's death, his view was to make it easy for the South to regain its positions in the Union and a part of Congress once again. He required simply a portion of the voters to agree to the laws and rules of the union while Radical Republicans had their own views. Radical Republicans thought that in order for the Southerns to join the Union once again, they should have a majority of their voters abide and agree to the new rules and laws (Wade- Davis Bill). During the actual reconstruction, parts of both views were taken into account, but the death on Lincoln in 1865 didn't make that easy. Finally reconstruction took place and military action was taken in order to make sure compliance in the South was peaceful.
Your summary of the effects of the 13th amendment was very thorough, and it was helpful that you outlined the differences between what Lincoln wanted and what the Radical Republicans wanted out of the Southern states before they could rejoin the Union. I wonder if Lincoln's plan would have been more effective, if he had somehow managed to stay alive and lead the country through turmoil. The Radical Republicans seemed to make the whole ordeal very bumpy and there were a lot of problems with their plan, so I wonder if Lincoln could have done any better than them. Good job with description and explanations.
ReplyDeleteI like your summary and how you explained the causes and effects of the 13th Amendment. One correction I have is that the Black Codes were not created to enable a protection of the free black man. They were created by the South to essentially subjugate blacks and create a society that was as similar to the pre-civil war era as possible. Again, I think your article is very informative. Good job!
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