PresidentS and social Groups of the Reconstruction era
By: Kristella Pagbilao
When reconstructing a nation, major leaders and different social groups can have a major impact on social reform. After the Civil War during the time period 1865 to 1870, our country was in the state of transformation to become the “land of the free.” The leaders and social groups that had major influence on our nation’s development at that time included the president Andrew Johnson, also the following president Ulysses S. Grant, the Radical Republican group, the Feminists, the opponents of the reconstruction and the infamous group the Ku Klux Klan.
Andrew Johnson was the president at the beginning of the Reconstruction Era of America. Johnson was the seventeenth president of the United States and held office from 1865-1869.[1] Johnson took office after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Unfortunately, Johnson’s ideas for Reconstruction did not match those of Abraham Lincoln. President Johnson still held racist views and believed in the right to own slaves.[2] Johnson did little for the forward movement of the Reconstruction Era. He believed that blacks we not equal to the whites and therefore did not warrant citizenship or voting rights. It could also be said that Johnson impeded the movement because he pardoned all white southerners who took an oath of allegiance, which allowed political offices and land to be reinstated to those who decided to do so.[3] Johnson had major conflict with Congress and the Radical Republicans. Johnson even took away Edwin M. Stanton’s position as Secretary of War. Stanton was a supporter of the Radical Republicans. This is when the House of Representatives took action and by voting for articles of impeachment.[4]
Andrew Johnson was the president at the beginning of the Reconstruction Era of America. Johnson was the seventeenth president of the United States and held office from 1865-1869.[1] Johnson took office after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Unfortunately, Johnson’s ideas for Reconstruction did not match those of Abraham Lincoln. President Johnson still held racist views and believed in the right to own slaves.[2] Johnson did little for the forward movement of the Reconstruction Era. He believed that blacks we not equal to the whites and therefore did not warrant citizenship or voting rights. It could also be said that Johnson impeded the movement because he pardoned all white southerners who took an oath of allegiance, which allowed political offices and land to be reinstated to those who decided to do so.[3] Johnson had major conflict with Congress and the Radical Republicans. Johnson even took away Edwin M. Stanton’s position as Secretary of War. Stanton was a supporter of the Radical Republicans. This is when the House of Representatives took action and by voting for articles of impeachment.[4]
President Andrew Johnson was impeached on February 24, 1868 and was followed by Ulysses S. Grant being voted into office as the eighteenth president of the United States.[5] During this time, there was still much racism in the United States. Construction of the “land of the free” posed many difficulties for the presidents of this era. The idea of freedom for the black man did not coincide with the idea of whites and blacks being racially equal. Ulysses S. Grant utilized military skill and federal legislation to defend the newly freed black citizens. [6] Grant even had to combat the racist terrorist group, the Ku Klux Klan. But, in the end Grant failed to satisfy the “needs of the newly freed slaves and, at the same time, entice white Southerners into a Republican Party dedicated to creating jobs and solid businesses in the defeated region.”[7] Though Grant’s efforts were recognized, reconstruction of America was a huge issue to tackle.
Radical Republicans strongly opposed the racist actions that Andrew Johnson took during his presidency. Also known as the Radicals, they believed in equality for all despite race. Their stated purpose was to fight “the extensions of slavery.”[8] Furthermore, they aided in the fight for the right for blacks to be able to vote, resulting in the fifteenth amendment. They also pushed for the punishments for the leaders involved in the Confederacy during the Civil War. [9] The Radical Republicans greatly supported the Civil Rights Act. The Radical Republican party greatly contributed to blurring racial lines and the forward motion of the Reconstruction of America.
Radical Republicans strongly opposed the racist actions that Andrew Johnson took during his presidency. Also known as the Radicals, they believed in equality for all despite race. Their stated purpose was to fight “the extensions of slavery.”[8] Furthermore, they aided in the fight for the right for blacks to be able to vote, resulting in the fifteenth amendment. They also pushed for the punishments for the leaders involved in the Confederacy during the Civil War. [9] The Radical Republicans greatly supported the Civil Rights Act. The Radical Republican party greatly contributed to blurring racial lines and the forward motion of the Reconstruction of America.
Though the Radical Republican group significantly impacted the acceptance of all races, the party was unconstructive toward the gender equality movement. Developments such as the fourteenth and fifteenth amendment did not encompass women’s rights. Therefore, the feminists group took responsibility to tackle these issues. “Women activists saw the Reconstruction as the moment to claim their own emancipation.”[10] Feminists undertook issues such as sexual discrimination in the labor force, divorce laws that favored males, rights for women who were being domestically abused, and issues on birth control. The fight for women’s rights went on for years, into the early 1900s.[11]
Other than President Andrew Johnson there were other social groups that impeded the forward movement of the Reconstruction, this included the terrorist group the Ku Klux Klan. This political terrorist group came about after the Civil War, during the establishment of the Civil Rights Bill. Also known as the KKK, they stood for “the maintenance of absolute white supremacy in response to newly gained civil and political rights by southern blacks after the Civil War.”[12] The Ku Klux Klan ran rampant through the South committing hate crimes and even murdering newly freed slaves. President Grant was forced to take action against these violent attacks and arrest hundreds of Klansmen, driving the KKK out of the South.[13] The success of the removal of the Ku Klux Klan in the south contributed to progressive movement of this crucial era.
These are just a few of the major players in the Reconstruction Era. Their influences greatly swayed the forward idea of the Reconstruction to transform American to become the land of the truly free.
[1] “Andrew Johnson,” The White House, accessed February 7, 2015, http://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/andrewjohnson.
[2] “Andrew Johnson,” History, accessed February 7, 2015, http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/andrew-johnson.
[3] Eric Foner, Give Me Liberty!: An American History (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2014), 563.
[4] Foner, Give Me Liberty!, 567.
[5] “Ulysses S. Grant,” The White House, accessed February 8, 2015, http://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/ulyssessgrant.
[6] “American President: Ulysses S. Grant,” University of Virginia Miller Center, accessed February 8, 2015, http://millercenter.org/president/grant/essays/biography/4.
[7] University of Virginia Miller Center, “American President: Ulysses S. Grant.”
[8] George Blackburn, “Radical Republican Motivation: A Case History,” The Journal of Negro History. 54, no. 2, 110.
[9] Blackburn, “Radical Republican Motivation: A Case History,”109.
[10] Foner, Give Me Liberty!, 570.
[11] Patricia Ireland “Women’s Rights,” Social Policy 28, no. 3 (1998): 14.
[12] Jonathan Bryant, “Ku Klux Klan in the Reconstruction Era,” New Georgia Encyclopedia (September 2014).
[13] Foner, Give Me Liberty!, 578.
Other than President Andrew Johnson there were other social groups that impeded the forward movement of the Reconstruction, this included the terrorist group the Ku Klux Klan. This political terrorist group came about after the Civil War, during the establishment of the Civil Rights Bill. Also known as the KKK, they stood for “the maintenance of absolute white supremacy in response to newly gained civil and political rights by southern blacks after the Civil War.”[12] The Ku Klux Klan ran rampant through the South committing hate crimes and even murdering newly freed slaves. President Grant was forced to take action against these violent attacks and arrest hundreds of Klansmen, driving the KKK out of the South.[13] The success of the removal of the Ku Klux Klan in the south contributed to progressive movement of this crucial era.
These are just a few of the major players in the Reconstruction Era. Their influences greatly swayed the forward idea of the Reconstruction to transform American to become the land of the truly free.
[1] “Andrew Johnson,” The White House, accessed February 7, 2015, http://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/andrewjohnson.
[2] “Andrew Johnson,” History, accessed February 7, 2015, http://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/andrew-johnson.
[3] Eric Foner, Give Me Liberty!: An American History (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2014), 563.
[4] Foner, Give Me Liberty!, 567.
[5] “Ulysses S. Grant,” The White House, accessed February 8, 2015, http://www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/ulyssessgrant.
[6] “American President: Ulysses S. Grant,” University of Virginia Miller Center, accessed February 8, 2015, http://millercenter.org/president/grant/essays/biography/4.
[7] University of Virginia Miller Center, “American President: Ulysses S. Grant.”
[8] George Blackburn, “Radical Republican Motivation: A Case History,” The Journal of Negro History. 54, no. 2, 110.
[9] Blackburn, “Radical Republican Motivation: A Case History,”109.
[10] Foner, Give Me Liberty!, 570.
[11] Patricia Ireland “Women’s Rights,” Social Policy 28, no. 3 (1998): 14.
[12] Jonathan Bryant, “Ku Klux Klan in the Reconstruction Era,” New Georgia Encyclopedia (September 2014).
[13] Foner, Give Me Liberty!, 578.