History Disscusion - Reconstruction

1) What were the goals and competing visions for Reconstruction? What did freedom mean to former slaves? The goals and competing visions for Reconstruction were to put an end to slavery and financial independence. To resuscitate the southern economy, President Lincoln and President Johnson put together a reconstruction act. President Lincoln had an intention of reuniting the southerners and to replace the majority rule by the reliable power. For African-Americans they see the freedom they had as being released from bondage and the ability to claim their fundamental human rights and break out the injustice which is associated with slavery. For formerly enslaved people, freedom meant an end to the whip, to the sale of family members, and white masters. The promise of freedom held out the hope of self-determination, educational opportunities, and full rights of citizenship. A free man or free woman is a person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. In the time past, enslaved people were freed either by manumission (granted freedom by their captorowners) or emancipation (granted freedom as part of a larger group). 2) What were the social and political effects of Radical Reconstruction in the South? Discuss the origins of Civil Rights. Radical Reconstruction promoted a lot of social movement for the rights of the slaves in the South, and it also stimulates an outburst of the political organization. While the civil war led to the end of slavery, the reconstruction period led to a higher level of racism in some regions. Moving on with the Reconstruction, most states in the South rob the African Americans of their political and civil rights. Though Radical Reconstruction was an improvement on President Johnson's ineffective way of Reconstruction, it had its ups and downs. The daily lives of blacks and poor whites changed very little. While Radicals in Congress successfully passed rights legislation, southerners all too advantage of the laws for their good. Southern governments were then formed. The newly formed southern governments established public schools, but they were still segregated and did not receive enough money to assist them. Black literacy rates improved but not drastically. Politically, Reconstruction was widely viewed as an era of corruption and misgovernment, supposedly caused by allowing blacks to take part in politics. This interpretation helped to justify the South's system of racial segregation and denying the vote to blacks, which survived into the 1960s. The Radical Republicans believed blacks were entitled to the same political rights and opportunities as whites. They also thought that the Confederate leaders should be punished for their roles in the Civil War. 3) How did Black families, churches, schools, and other institutions contribute to the development of African American culture and political activism in this period? Families played a significant role in the post-emancipation black community. Former slaves worked hard to look for their lost families. Widows of black soldiers successfully claimed the pensions for the survivors, making the federal government recognize the validity of the prewar relationship that slavery tried to deny. The power of the black men was increased through emancipation. Churches gave the black Americans a chance to worship their respective religions instead of those of their former masters. Schools gave the former slaves a chance to attain the education they required to take part in the economy and politics. 4) By what methods did southern whites seek to limit African-American civil rights and liberties? Discuss the results of the Compromise of 1877 The South applied black codes to limit their rights and liberties. They also used literacy tests to deny African-Americans the right to vote. The compromise of 1877 was enacted to resolve the dispute of the 1876 elections and prevented the country from going to war. It marked the end of the Reconstruction era and opened doors for discriminatory policies against the blacks that the northern states had been trying to do away with. 5) Discuss the term "Gilded Age" and discuss life in America during this period. Discuss the rise of Big Businesses and key barons •The term Gilded age is used to describe the tumultuous years between the civil war and the turn of the twentieth century. •Life in America during this period involved the following; Greater political participation. Corruption, unemployment, and racial inequality. The emergence of new products and technology that enhanced new living standards. The rise of businesses and key Barons was because of ; Railway transportation, technological advancements, and industrialization enabled the growth and development of the economy that promoted big businesses to take place effectively. The rise of the class system brought about the height of the key Barons due to disparities in wealth, corruption, and many others. 6) Why were railroads so important to America's second industrial revolution? What events demonstrate their influence on society and politics, as well as the economy? Railroads were so crucial to the Americans second industrial revolution in ways such as follows; •Facilitated the cheap movement or transportation of raw materials from the extraction points to the industries. •It facilitated trade to take place, which in turn led to the high productivity for raw materials, products, and many others. •It enabled mass transportation of people who influenced the urbanization and growth of cities, towns, and others.