Overview of The Major Events of The Reconstruction Era of The United States

Expectation as a result of war should be that of a positive outcome, however, that is not always the case. General Ulysses S. Grant imagined a perfect society, but this was probably more of his optimistic imagination rather than what was happening and would not come to be realized. At the end of the Civil War, reconstruction was quite impactful that encouraged changes throughout society. Reconstruction, the era following the U.S. Civil War, was an effort to reunite a divided nation to include African Americans into society. This movement was both a positive and a negative effort for the African Americans who were former slaves.

Reconstruction ended the Confederate secession and slavery, making the newly freed slaves citizens with civil rights. The three new Constitutional amendments were also introduced which were the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments. The main event that helped force the Reconstruction Era into success was the surrender of General Robert E. Lee to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox. Grant, along with the union, was against slavery and in their success all efforts to put an end to slavery was complete. The 13th Amendment was presented which abolished slavery and involuntary servitude. This freed hundreds of thousands of former slaves. These slaves that were in The South were known as the “Freedmen.” They were promised that they would be treated no differently than others, but they were still overruled by the former Confederates.

At the beginning of the Reconstruction time period slaves were no longer slaves but instead became Freedman. Freedmen were newly-freed slaves, living in The South. The 14th Amendment gave them citizenship and the protection of equality like everyone else, which meant they got rights. Some of these rights were the right to practice their religion, education, fair contracts for labor and property, and the right to perform a firm family structure. The 15th Amendment gave them the right to vote. The Freedmen had equality and rights like everyone else, but that didn't last through all of the Reconstruction Era.

The Reconstruction was not always positive, it took a turn and went into a racial downfall. Jim Crow Laws were introduced to “keep society the same.” Jim Crow Laws were a collection of state and local statutes that legalized racial segregation. There were Black codes that were similar to the Jim Crow Laws. Black codes were strict laws detailing the when, where, and how freed slaves could work and participate in society. These codes appeared throughout the South which affected the colored citizens daily lives, these codes took voting rights away, controlled where they lived, and how they traveled. These laws created segregation in public schools, places, transportation, restrooms, restaurants, drinking fountains, and including the right to participate in the U.S. military, etc. Because their rights were taken away this caused major racism which introduced the black codes.

In conclusion, after the Civil War, the Reconstruction Era was full of some positive events and negatives however, other events still led to the downfall for African Americans. The Jim Crow Laws greatly affected African Americans. These laws allowed such behavior to those who were seen as the less of the white population which were former slaves. The laws were still not fair because they were promised equality and protection.