16.2
Important Events
March 1865: Congress created the Freedmen’s Bureau, approved by Lincoln for one year. It delivered food, helped with labor contracts, reunited families, and established schools for freed people and poor White people.
1865 and 1866: Southern states passed discriminatory Black codes to maintain racial hierarchy and control labor.
1866: Congress renewed the Freedmen’s Bureau charter, but President Johnson vetoed it. Congress overrode the veto.
April 1866: Congress passed the first Civil Rights Act, establishing citizenship for African Americans. President Johnson vetoed it, but Congress overrode the veto.
July 1866: The Fourteenth Amendment was sent to state legislatures for ratification.
Late Summer 1866: President Johnson undertook the disastrous “swing around the circle” speeches to oppose Radical Republican Reconstruction.
Timeline
1857: Dred Scott decision declared Black people could not be citizens (overturned by Civil Rights Act of 1866 and Fourteenth Amendment).
March 1865: Creation of the Freedmen’s Bureau.
1865-1866: Enactment of Black codes in Southern states.
April 1866: Passage of the Civil Rights Act.
July 1866: Fourteenth Amendment introduced for ratification.
Consequences & Results
Freedmen's Bureau: Provided vital assistance in food, education (e.g., Fisk, Hampton, Dillard Universities), and labor contract negotiation, easing the transition from slavery. Its programs, however, faced violence and political opposition.
Black Codes: Severely restricted freed people's rights (e.g., voting, jury service, land ownership, weapon carrying) and tied them to the land through restrictive labor contracts, low wages, and debt, effectively re-creating a form of slavery.
Civil Rights Act of 1866: Defined African Americans as citizens and gave the federal government power to protect their rights, repudiating the Dred Scott decision.
Fourteenth Amendment: Granted citizenship and equal protection under the law, overturned the three-fifths compromise, penalized states denying suffrage, barred certain Confederates from office, and validated Union debts while voiding Confederate debts and slaveholder compensation claims.
President Johnson's Actions: His leniency towards the South and vetoes of congressional efforts (Freedmen's Bureau renewal, Civil Rights Act) escalated conflict with Congress. His public speeches further damaged his political standing and intensified the divide.
Endurance of Black Codes: Despite federal efforts, Black codes persisted as a foundation for future racially discriminatory Jim Crow laws.
Important Figures
President Andrew Johnson: Advocated for leniency for the South; opposed congressional Reconstruction efforts, vetoed key legislation, and believed Black people were inferior to White people.
Abraham Lincoln: Approved the creation of the Freedmen's Bureau before his death.
Radical Republicans: Advocated for greater rights for freed people, a thorough Reconstruction of the South, believed in the constructive power of the federal government, and championed the Civil Rights Act and the Fourteenth Amendment.
Freed People: Sought land, financial security, education, political participation, and family reunification after emancipation.
Summary
Reconstruction was marked by significant tension between President Johnson’s lenient approach and Congress’s desire for greater rights for freed people and a more thorough restructuring of the South. The Freedmen’s Bureau worked to aid freed people, particularly in education, while southern states enacted Black codes to maintain racial subjugation and control labor. Congress countered these efforts with the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the Fourteenth Amendment, which aimed to secure citizenship and equal protection for African Americans. Johnson’s constant vetoes and confrontational style deepened the political divide, ultimately weakening his influence and highlighting the profound disagreements over the role of the federal government and the future of racial equality in the United States.