NO QUARTER FOR CORRUPTION (Focussing on The Fed./FRBS)

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Reconstruction:

The Radical Republicans and Reconstruction [Kevin Holloway]

Immediately following the Civil War, Southern states passed numerous laws restricting the rights of Blacks. They were known as the "Black codes". Mississippi, for example, barred interracial marriages. The punishment for such an act was death. Another code restricted the area in which Blacks could live. For example, Blacks could not own or rent land outside of an incorporated town. The purpose of this code was to undermine the efforts of the federal government in giving forty acres of land to former slaves. Many large plantations in the South were confiscated or abandoned. Much of this land was parceled out to slaves in forty acre allotments.

These actions by Southern states angered congress. Led by the "Radical Republicans", congress passed sweeping legislation during the Reconstruction years. Congressmen Charles Sumner and Thaddeus Stevens led the fight and first passed an act to establish the Freedmen's Bureau. Its purpose was to provide education and training for Blacks in their transition from slavery to freedom. Despite the best efforts of President Andrew Johnson to stop all legislation assisting Blacks, several significant bills were passed. With martial law in force in the South, congress could do virtually anything it wanted to. The rebellious states could not vote on the measures before congress, and there were enough votes to override President Johnson's vetoes.

The year following the Civil War, congress passed the Civil Rights act of 1866. It was subsequently vetoed by Andrew Johnson. Congress, however, overrode his veto and immediately passed the 14th Amendment due in part to Johnson's resistance. The purpose of both measures involved the rights of persons born or naturalized in the United States, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." With exception to Tennessee, all Southern states refused to ratify the amendment. Congress than passed the Reconstruction Act, which prohibited these states from participating in Congress until they passed the measure and revised their own state constitutions. Passage of this amendment and the Reconstruction Act met with violent opposition. Despite the presence of the military, Whites went on a rampage killing, beating, burning, and destroying any Blacks they could find. Blacks were lynched by the hundreds.

In 1870, another Civil Rights Act was passed, and was immediately followed by the 15th Amendment - "the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color or previous conditions of servitude."

At the start of Reconstruction, nearly 90% of Blacks lived in the South. In many cities and towns throughout the South, Blacks were in the majority. As a result of 15th amendment, many Blacks were elected to prominent offices in the South.

Seventeen Blacks were elected to serve in the U. S. House of Representatives and the U. S. Senate. Blanche K. Bruce and Hiram Revels from Mississippi were the first Blacks to be elected to the U. S. senate. Bruce served a full term, while Revels only served a year and a half. All of these elected officials were Republicans. As a matter of fact, 80% of the Republican voters in the South were Black men.

Because Blacks were in the majority throughout the South, Whites feared a complete take over of the political system. Led by the KKK and other White supremacist organizations, Whites went on another rampage killing and beating Blacks throughout the South. Any Black person who attempted to exercise their "right" to vote, was met with violent resistance. Until 1880, the voting booths were open and public. Some Whites allowed Blacks to vote. KKK members would stand by Black voters as they cast their vote. If he didn't vote the way they wanted, the voter was beaten right there on the spot and was made to change his vote. President Grant had to send additional troops to the South to stop the violence. Although the amendment gave Blacks and other minority males the right to vote, many feared reprisal from the Klan. Most of the Blacks who had been previously elected to office did not serve more than one term because of Black fear. Attempting to vote could result in the loss of income, or even the loss of life itself.

The last of the Reconstruction legislation was the Civil Rights Act of 1875, "Whereas, it is essential to just government we recognize the equality of all men before the law, and hold that it is the duty of government in its dealings with the people to mete out equal and exact justice to all of whatever nationality, race, color, or persuasion, religious or political; and it being the appropriate object of legislation to enact great fundamental principles of law." The act was short lived. In 1883, the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional.

As earlier noted, a number of Blacks were elected to congress during Reconstruction. Numerous Black colleges and institutes were also established. Howard, Fisk, the Hampton Institute, and the Tuskegee Institute were just a few. The Freedmen's

Bureau established schools and training facilities throughout the South to assist Blacks in their transition from slavery to freedmen.

However, as noted by the our present political climate, by 1876, many Whites felt the government was going too far with its attempts to establish equality in America. Many Northerners were beginning to sympathize with White Southerners. The government's helping hand for Blacks and other minorities was believed to be at the expense of Whites. Membership in the Ku Klux Klan exploded as former Confederate officers led the way. Within 10 years after being established in Pulaski, Tennessee in 1866, the KKK ruled the South.


Date Submitted: January 7, 1997

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CIVIL WAR RECONSTRUCTION, RACISM, THE KKK, & THE CONFEDERATE "LOST CAUSE"
Link: http://www.teacheroz.com/reconstruction.htm

Civil War and Reconstruction Timeline

1860 South Carolina legislature convenes and votes to secede from the Union. Meanwhile, Congress convenes in an effort to work out some compromise; the Crittenden Compromise is proposed, which would restore the Missouri Compromise line across the continent. The compromise is ineffectual in the face of the events at hand.
1861 March 4, Abraham Lincoln inaugurated president.
1861 March 11, The Confederate States of America adopts a Constitution. The Confederacy presently includes only the seven states of the Deep South ­ Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas.
1861 April 12, South Carolina troops fire on the Federal arsenal at Fort Sumter. The Civil War begins. The states of Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Arkansas will secede from the Union in coming months. Though they are slave states, the "border states" of Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri will remain loyal to the Union.
1861 July 2, President Lincoln issues his suspension of habeas corpus in certain cases.
1861 July 22, U.S. Congress passes resolution declaring that the war is being fought to "preserve the Union," not to destroy slavery.
1861 November 1, Lincoln declares George McClellan General-in-Chief of the Union army.
1862 April 25, Union soldiers capture New Orleans.
1862 May 20, Lincoln signs the Homestead Act into law.
1862 July, Congress passes the militia act, authorizing Lincoln to use black soldiers ­ blacks are used only as scouts, laborers, spies, kitchen workers, and nurses until after the Emancipation Proclamation. Until 1864, black soldiers are paid only half of what white soldiers are paid.
1862 August 22, Lincoln issues the "Greeley Letter" in response to Horace Greeleyís editorial, "A Prayer of Twenty Millions."
1862 September 17, The Battle of Antietam, Maryland ­ the bloodiest battle of the Civil War. Leeís invasion of the North is halted, and rebels retreat to Virginia. Though the battle is essentially a draw, the battle revives flagging Northern hopes.
1862 September 23, Lincolnís Emancipation Proclamation is published, to take effect on January 1, 1863.
1863 January 1, The Emancipation Proclamation takes effect.
1863 March 3, The Conscription Act (Enrollment Act) is passed, demanding enrollment of males ages 20-45 in the Union Army. Payments of $300 may be used for an exemption.
1863 June 20, Union West Virginia is admitted as the 35th state - its constitution mandates the gradual emancipation of slaves.
1863 July 3, Battle of Gettysburg - major Union victory. Over 50,000 casualties total; halts the Southern advance into Union territory and leads to the retreat of Leeís army.
1863 July 4, Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi ends - 29,000 rebel troops surrender with the city, giving the Union control of the Mississippi river and splitting the Confederacy in two.
1863 July 13, New York Draft Riots begin - four days of Irish-American mob action.
1863 November 19, Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address. 117 years later Andrew Pinzler is born.
1863 December 8, Lincoln issues the Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, offering pardons to Confederates who take a loyalty oath.
1864 July 4, Lincoln pocket-vetoes the Wade-Davis bill.
1864 September 2, Sherman burns Atlanta and continues his march to the sea.
1864 November 8, Lincoln defeats Democrat George McClellan in the election of 1864.
1864 December 22, Sherman enters Savannah, completing his march to the sea.
1865 February 1, Congress proposes the 13th Amendment, outlawing slavery and involuntary servitude everywhere in the United States.
1865 March 3, Freedmenís Bureau is founded to aid former slaves
1865 March 4, Lincoln is inaugurated for his second term with Andrew Johnson as vice-president, pledging "malice toward none, and charity for all."
1865 April 8, Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox, Virginia.
1865 April 14, Lincoln is assassinated at Fordís Theater by John Wilkes Booth.
1865 April 18, Johnston surrender to Sherman in North Carolina, effectively ending the Civil War.
1865 Johnson moves to Reconstruct the South on his own initiative ­ He prefers to call the process "restoration", emphasizing his leniency towards the rebelling Southern states. Former Confederate military leaders and patricians with taxable property over $20,000 are disenfranchised until further notice; only 10% of enfranchised Southern population needs to take an oath of loyalty before readmission.
1865 Southern states begin to pass "Black Codes" ­ these laws subject former slaves to a variety of restrictions on their freedom: they forbid blacks to testify against whites; they establish vagrancy and apprenticeship laws; blacks cannot serve on juries, bear arms, or hold large meetings.
1865 The Thirty-ninth Congress convenes ­ It is the first session since Lincolnís death. All Confederates states, with the exception of Mississippi have formally accepted presidential requirements for readmission to the Union and representation in Congress. Led by radical Thaddeus Stevens, the House simply omits the southerners from roll call, effectively denying them admittance. It then proceeds to discuss punishment for the rebellious South which according to Radical Republican Charles Sumner has committed "state suicide".
1865 The Ku Klux Klan is formed in Tennessee ­ it is one of the many secret societies set up to terrorize blacks. Its methods become ever more vicious as whites become more certain that their old way of life is being threatened.
1866 Johnson vetoes Freedmenís Bureau bill and Civil Rights Act of 1866; a modified version of the Freedmenís Bureau bill later passes, and Congress overrides Johnsonís veto of the Civil Rights Act.
1866 14th Amendment passed by Congress ­ grants full citizenship to blacks, gives the Federal government the responsibility to protect equal rights under the law to all American citizens.
1866 Bloody race riots erupt in Memphis and New Orleans.
1866 In Congressional elections of 1866, Republicans increase their majority in Congress, forming solid anti-Johnson majorities in both houses.
1867 First Reconstruction Act ­ passes over Johnsonís veto. Temporarily places the South under military rule; states may be readmitted if their new state constitutions provide for black suffrage.
1868 Impeachment Crisis ­ Congress impeaches Johnson but he avoids conviction by one vote.
1868 Georgia expels blacks from its legislature. Military rule is instantly reimposed on the state and earlier readmission to representation in Congress is revoked. Ratification of the 14th amendment is now made obligatory before representation in Congress will be allowed.
1868 14th Amendment ratified.
1868 Grant is elected President.
1869 15th Amendment passed by Congress ­ prohibits any state from denying a citizen the right to vote because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
1869 The first rail line to cross the continent is completed ­ The Union Pacific is joined with the Central Pacific; the news is flashed by telegraph and the nation celebrates from coast to coast. This railroad network will be the single most influential factor in the emergence of a new industrial age.
1870 15th Amendment ratified.
1870 Force Acts (KKK Acts) passed by Congress ­ seek to enforce 15th Amendment by giving Federal protection for black suffrage, and authorize the use of Federal troops against the KKK. These acts are declared unconstitutional in Cruikshank v. U.S. in the 1880ís.
1872 Grant wins a second term as President, defeating Horace Greeley.
1873 Panic of 1873 plunges the nation into a depression.
1874 Grant uses force for the last time to subvert the White Leagueís attempt to overthrow a Republican government accused of stealing an election.
1875 "Whiskey ring" scandal exposed.
1875 Civil Rights Act of 1875 ­ states that no citizen can be denied the equal use of public facilities such as inns, restaurants, etc. on the basis of color.
1876-7 Disputed election between Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden ­ resolved in favor of Republican Hayes.
1877 Compromise of 1877 ­ results in end to military intervention in the South and the fall of the last radical governments; restores "home rule" in the South
1883 Civil Rights Cases ­ strike down the Civil Rights Act of 1875. Congress may not legislate on civil rights unless a state passes a discriminatory law; Court declares the 14th Amendment silent on racial discrimination by private citizens.
1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ­ upholds Louisiana statute requiring "separate but equal" accommodations on railroads. Court declares that segregation is not necessarily discrimination. Justice Harlanís dissent argues that segregation is inherently discrimination; this argument will be used to support the majority opinion in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.
1898 Williams v. Mississippi ­ upholds a state law requiring a literacy test to qualify for voting.

Link: http://pinzler.com/ushistory/timeline6.html

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Congressional Reconstruction


When Congress convened from a long recess in December 1865, President Johnson regarded his restoration policy as complete. Republican leaders in Congress wasted little time in revealing their disagreement. Determined that Union victory must stand for more than simply restoration of the status quo, the Republican majority in Congress refused to seat the representatives sent by the Southern states or to accept the legitimacy of the Southern state governments formed under Johnson's requirements.

Instead, Congress began a lengthy debate over Reconstruction policy. The program eventually enacted resulted from a series of compromises among Republican factions; the Radicals were never powerful enough to gain everything they sought. Still, fueled by anger at the president's refusal to compromise and at the appearance of former Confederates returning to power throughout the South, members of Congress moved increasingly toward the Radicals. The key Reconstruction measures enacted aimed to produce far more sweeping changes in the former Confederacy than had appeared likely at the war's end.

Instrumental in convincing Republicans that it was futile to seek a compromise with the president were his vetoes in early 1866 of two measures that won overwhelming Republican support and were eventually enacted over his vetoes. The first of these was the Freedmen's Bureau Bill, which continued the agency's operations for another year. The second was the Civil Rights Bill, which extended citizenship to blacks by defining all persons born in the United States as citizens. In denouncing these measures as illegal interference within the states by the federal government, Johnson clung to basic Democratic beliefs rooted in a pre-Civil War vision of states' rights, weak central government, and white supremacy.

The heart of the Reconstruction plan was laid out in two measures: the 14th Amendment to the Constitution and the Reconstruction Act. The 14th Amendment was passed in June 1866 and ratified in 1868. It was designed to protect the rights of Southern blacks and restrict the political power of former Confederates. It added into the Constitution the definition of U.S. citizenship that was enacted in the Civil Rights Bill; barred states from abridging “the privileges or immunities of citizens” or depriving “any person of life, liberty or property without due process of law”; encouraged Southern states to allow blacks to vote, without actually requiring it, by reducing the congressional representation of states that disfranchised male citizens; barred former officials who had rebelled against the Union from holding public office; and repudiated both Confederate war debts and claims of former slaveholders to compensation for the loss of their slaves.

The Reconstruction Act was passed in March 1867 over President Johnson's veto and was strengthened by three supplemental acts passed later the same year and in 1868. It provided for the organization of loyal governments in all former Confederate states except Tennessee, which, having ratified the 14th Amendment, was regarded as already reconstructed. The ten remaining states were divided into five military districts, each headed by a military commander. The military commander was responsible for seeing that each state under his command wrote a new constitution that provided for voting rights for all adult males, regardless of race. Only when the state had ratified its new constitution and the 14th Amendment would the process of political reorganization be complete.

Congressional Reconstruction activity continued after 1867. Among the most important acts were the impeachment proceedings against President Johnson, who in 1868 was spared conviction and removal from office by one vote in the Senate. Republicans in Congress disapproved of Johnson's dismissal of radical politicians and generals active in Reconstruction, and felt that he was obstructing implementation of the government's Reconstruction policy. In 1869 Congress passed the 15th Amendment to the Constitution, which was ratified in 1870. It broadened the 14th Amendment's protection of black suffrage by providing that no citizen could be denied the right to vote on the basis of “race, color or previous condition of servitude.” Another important act was the Civil Rights Act of 1875, which barred discrimination by hotels, theaters, and railroads. In 1883, however, it was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States. Despite this continuing legislative activity, the basic course of Reconstruction was set with the passage of the Reconstruction Act in March 1867. Although this course constituted a major new departure for both the South and the country as a whole, it represented a compromise carefully pieced together by competing factions in Congress rather than a total Radical victory. Radical Republicans lacked the political power to secure two of their most cherished goals: redistribution of plantation lands to former slaves and poor whites, and a prolonged federal supervision of the former Confederate states. According to the Reconstruction compromise, those states would be required to provide equal civil and political rights to blacks, but once they complied with those requirements, the states would be free to govern themselves.

Link: http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761556642/Reconstruction_(U_S_history).html