APAAS Study Guide
EMPOWERING HISTORIES: AP African American Studies Must Know Essential Knowledge Unit 3
Topic 3.1: The Reconstruction Amendments
Key Question: How did the Reconstruction Amendments define standards of citizenship? How did this impact African Americans?
Context: The Civil War had ended with approximately 620,000 casualties, and about 180,000 Black men served in the U.S. Army. Thousands of Black women contributed by serving as laundry workers or nurses aides. Four million newly liberated African Americans were uncertain of their future. Frederick Douglass emphasized that the abolition of slavery represented just the beginning of their struggle.
Reconstruction involved rebuilding Southern society after the Civil War. Its focus was on transforming a society built on slavery into one that included four million newly freed African Americans as citizens.
The initial phase began during the war, as Northern forces took control of Southern territories.
General Grant's control of Davis Bend in Mississippi led to the division of white land among freedmen, who began electing their judges and sheriffs.
Conversely, in other regions, Union soldiers pressured freedmen to sign contracts with their former owners and return to labor camps, albeit now for wages.
Federal Support: During Reconstruction (1865–1877), the federal government aimed to reintegrate former Confederate states and secure rights for free and formerly enslaved African Americans, granting them citizenship, equal rights, and political representation.
In March 1865, Congress passed the Freedmen's Bureau law, establishing a federal agency for providing relief, food, shelter, and education to four million freed slaves.
Initially, the Freedmen's Bureau had the authority to redistribute former white-owned land to Black families, but this plan was vetoed by President Johnson.
**Key Amendments:
13th Amendment (1865):** Abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
14th Amendment (1868): Established birthright citizenship in the U.S. and equal protection for all people, effectively overturning the Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) decision and related Black codes.
15th Amendment (1870): Prohibited voter discrimination based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude, thus granting voting rights to Black men.
Topic 3.2: Social Life: Reuniting Black Families
Key Question: How did African Americans strengthen family bonds after abolition and the Civil War?
After emancipation, African Americans worked to locate family members separated by the slave trade using newspapers, word of mouth, and assistance from the Freedmen’s Bureau.
Despite their efforts, many could not reunite due to inadequate records or multiple sales, resulting in the establishment of "fictive kin" networks to support one another.
Many freed men and women sought legal marriage to formalize their unions after gaining that opportunity.
Churches played a significant role in recovering family and community cohesion by providing venues for reunions, support, and celebrations of life milestones like weddings and baptisms.
Topic 3.3: Black Codes, Land, and Labor
Key Question: How did Black Codes undermine the ability of African Americans to advance after the abolition of slavery?
Following the Civil War, Union General William T. Sherman issued Special Field Orders No. 15, redistributing approximately 400,000 acres of land to liberated African American families, known colloquially as “40 Acres and a Mule.”
During Presidential Reconstruction (1865-1866), many Southern states enacted Black codes to undermine the legal rights of African Americans, restoring a form of social control reminiscent of earlier slave codes.
Black codes limited property ownership, compelled entry into exploitative labor contracts, and included harsh penalties for noncompliance, thereby curtailing economic advancement.
Economic Practices Post-Slavery:
President Johnson revoked Sherman's orders, reverting land to its previous white owners or allowing it to be bought by northern investors, forcing many African Americans into sharecropping arrangements.
In sharecropping, landowners provided land and resources in exchange for a significant share of the harvested crops, perpetuating a state of economic dependency.
The crop lien system further entrenched poverty by requiring freedmen to take loans from landowners for supplies, often leading to insurmountable debt.
Through convict leasing, many African American men were imprisoned for minor infractions and forced into labor conditions resembling slavery once again, violating the intent of the 13th Amendment.
Topic 3.4: The Defeat of Reconstruction
Key Question: How were Reconstruction-era reforms dismantled during the late 19th century?
Over time, societal focus shifted away from the consequences of the Civil War, and white southern societies increasingly denied Black citizenship until military enforcement compelled change.
The elections led to the decline of Radical Republicans and the rise of pro-business moderates, with Democrats regaining political strength.
Election of 1876: Marked by a contested outcome, the Compromise of 1877 resulted in the removal of U.S. troops from the South in exchange for Republican control of the White House.
De Jure Segregation Laws: Following the Compromise, states revised their constitutions to entrench segregation, strategically suppressing Black voting.
Measures for Suppressing Black Voting:
Poll Taxes: Taxes imposed on voters, preventing economically disadvantaged Black voters from participating.
Grandfather Clauses: Allowed white voters to bypass poll taxes based on their ancestors' voting status, while disenfranchising Black voters.
Literacy Tests: Administered discriminatorily, these tests were often easier for white voters than Black voters.
Racial Violence: The rise of organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan contributed to widespread terror against Black citizens who dared to vote or advocate for their rights.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): The Supreme Court upheld segregation, enshrining the doctrine of