Black Codes
Even as former slaves fought to assert their independence and gain economic autonomy during the
earliest years of Reconstruction, white landowners acted to control the labor force through a system
similar to the one that had existed during slavery. To that end, in late 1865, Mississippi and South
Carolina enacted the first black codes. Mississippi's law required blacks to have written evidence of
employment for the coming year each January; if they left before the end of the contract, they would be
forced to forfeit earlier wages and were subject to arrest. In South Carolina, a law prohibited blacks from
holding any occupation other than farmer or servant unless they paid an annual tax of $10 to $100. This
provision hit free blacks already living in Charleston and former slave artisans especially hard. In both
states, blacks were given heavy penalties for vagrancy, including forced plantation labor in some cases.
Under Johnson's policies of Presidential Reconstruction, nearly all the southern states would enact their
own black codes in 1865 and 1866. While the codes granted certain freedoms to African Americans–
including the right to buy and own property, marry, make contracts and testify in court (only in cases
involving people of their own race)–their primary purpose was to restrict blacks' labor and activity.
Some states limited the type of property that blacks could own, while virtually all the former
Confederate states passed strict vagrancy and labor contract laws, as well as so-called "antienticement"
measures designed to punish anyone who offered higher wages to a black laborer already under
contract. Blacks who broke labor contracts were subject to arrest, beating and forced labor, and
apprenticeship laws forced many minors (either orphans or those whose parents were deemed unable
to support them by a judge) into unpaid labor for white planters. Passed by a political system in which
blacks effectively had no voice, the black codes were enforced by all-white police and state militia forces
(often made up of Confederate veterans of the Civil War) across the South.
Enforcement and Impact of the Black Codes
The restrictive nature of the codes and widespread black resistance to their enforcement enraged many
in the North, who argued that the codes violated the fundamental principles of free labor ideology. After
passing the Civil Rights Act over Johnson's veto, Republicans in Congress effectively took control of
Reconstruction. The Reconstruction Act of 1867 required southern states to ratify the 14th
Amendment–which granted "equal protection" of the Constitution to former slaves–and enact universal
male suffrage before they could rejoin the Union. The 15th Amendment, adopted in 1870, guaranteed
that a citizen's right to vote would not be denied "on account of race, color, or previous condition of
servitude." During this period of Radical Reconstruction (1867-1877), blacks won election to southern
state governments and even to the U.S. Congress.
As indicated by the passage of the black codes, however, white southerners showed a steadfast
commitment to ensuring their supremacy and the survival of plantation agriculture in the postwar years.
Support for Reconstruction policies waned after the early 1870s, undermined by the violence of white
supremacist organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan.
Questions:
1. Why were the black codes established?
2. Who enforced the black codes?
3. What was the impact of black codes on African American people?
4. What groups formed due to the Black Codes?
5. Do you feel that the black codes were a necessary development for reconstruction? Please
explain your answer.
6. Discuss with your group:
a. What was the social impact of black codes on people living during the reconstruction
era?
b. Do you feel as though the Black Codes had a negative or positive impact on people’s
lives?
c. Do you feel the Black Codes were fair?
White Counterrevolution: The KKK.
In the months following the end of the Civil War many whites carried out acts of random violence
against blacks. In their frustration at having lost the war and suffered great loss of life and property, they
made the former slaves scapegoats for what they had endured. The violence became more focused
when the Ku Klux Klan was founded in December, 1865. The Klan and other white supremacy groups,
such as the Knights of the White Camellia, were well underway by 1867. The target of the Klan was the
Republican Party, both blacks and whites, as well as anyone who overtly assisted blacks in their quest for
greater freedom and economic independence.
The result was what can only be called a reign of terror conducted by the clan and other groups over the
next decades. Thousands were killed, injured or driven from their homes or suffered property damage
as buildings were burned and animals destroyed. Blacks who tried to further the cause of the Republican
Party were singled out for attack, as were whites who, for example, rented rooms to northern
carpetbaggers, including school teachers. Black men were beaten within an inch of their lives or even to
death in front of horrified family members. The fear of night riders often drove blacks into the woods to
sleep because they felt they were not safe in their own homes. (See Judge Albion Tourgee, Appendix)
Former Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest, reported to be the first Grand Wizard of the Klan
(though he claimed be never had control), formally disbanded it in 1868 because of increasing violence.
Nevertheless, the group continued to wreak vengeance upon freedmen and their white supporters.
Eventually the Congress passed Force Bills in 1870 and 1871 to control the violence and protect blacks
from being deprived of their civil and political, but enforcement of those acts was often lax, and other
means of intimidation often proved effective.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What was the KKK?
What was their purpose?
Who was their target?
How did others view the KKK?
How do you feel the KKK impacted people socially during Reconstruction?
Jim Crow Laws
Beginning in 1875, the Jim Crow Laws were the medium through which states and the federal
government approved the concept of “separate but equal” public facilities for black and white citizens.
These laws created a culture in which black and whites lived almost entirely detached lives from each
other. While in theory these laws required black facilities to be equal to white facilities, they very rarely
were, resulting in blacks often being forced to use inferior facilities or not being offered facilities at all.
Jim Crow Laws remained in effect until the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Name Origins
The name “Jim Crow Laws” derived from a comic and sketch show character played by T.D. Rice in 1904.
The name is actually from a song titled “Jump Jim Crow” in which Rice painted his face black. The song’s
theme was derogatory towards blacks. There are indications that the name was used prior to 1904, but
Rice’s performance is the first documented use of the term.
History of the Jim Crow Laws
Jim Crow Laws began to appear after the Civil War when blacks and whites struggled to coexist in a
nation in which blacks were no longer slaves. The Laws are not a unified set of rules, but rather refer to
legislation by states and the federal government permitting separate facilities for blacks. Overall, the
concept of these laws was to maintain blacks as inferior citizens and prevent the black culture from
mingling with white. These laws often took the form of requiring blacks to travel in different train cars,
vote at different facilities and use separate bathrooms and drinking fountains. In federal offices black
and white workers were separated.
Attempts at Breaking Jim Crow
The Jim Crow Laws were attempted to be changed as early as 1875 by the introduction of the first Civil
Rights Act. This Act established rights for every individual regardless of race, background, or previous
enslavement. In 1883, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Act unconstitutional by stating that it illegally
attempted to control private individuals and businesses. In Louisiana in 1892, a group of white and black
citizens attempted to challenge a local law requiring blacks to sit in a different train car from whites. This
challenge resulted in the 1896 Supreme Court Case Plessy v. Ferguson in which the Court upheld the
constitutionality of “separate but equal”.
World War II Era
Black soldiers served in World War II, but rarely on the front lines and, even then, most often were
separated from white soldiers. Most black soldiers were assigned to low-level jobs, such as prisoner
guarding or cooks. During the wear, racism extended so far as to prevent blacks from driving tanks
because it was believed they did not have the proper reflexes for the job. Only when desperate for
replacements, such as in crisis times like the Battle of the Bulge, did black soldiers actually fight.
The End of the Jim Crow Laws
Initial attacks against Jim Crow Laws began following World War II, after which black soldiers believed
themselves entitled to equal treatment due to their military service. The first step against the laws was
the Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board which overturned Plessy v. Ferguson. Subsequently, Court
rulings ended segregation on public transportation and, eventually, in public schools through the
argument that such rules violated the 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause. Private attempts for
segregation, such as placing restrictions on the transferability of property deeds, were also held
unconstitutional. The Jim Crow Laws were officially terminated by the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What was the purpose behind the Jim Crow Laws?
Who were they named after?
What impact did the Jim Crow Laws have on people?
How were they enforced?
What ended Jim Crow Laws?
Group Discussion:
1. Discuss how you would feel if you lived during Jim Crow Laws?
2. Do you feel the laws were fair?
3. What type of social impact did Jim Crow Laws have on people? Economically? Politically?
Voting Rights
In 1869 Congress passed the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which stated that, “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 condition of servitude.” The amendment was finally ratified in
1870, and well over half a million black names were added to the voter rolls during the 1870s. The Force
Acts were further attempts to suppress terrorist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, which had become
strong enough to seize political control of some Southern states.
Although the Fifteenth Amendment was meant to ensure voting rights for all males, such devices as poll
taxes and literacy tests were used to subvert the purpose of the amendment. Poll taxes had to be paid
two years in advance, and the financial burden was stiff for blacks. (Poor whites could procure election
“loans” to enable them to vote.) Literacy tests were used to restrict blacks, and alternatives such a
passing a test on the Constitution were often rigged in favor of whites. By the turn of the century, as a
result of such things as amended state constitutions, grandfather clauses and gerrymandering, black
voting in the South had been reduced to a fraction of its former numbers. By 1910 few blacks could vote
in parts of the South; thus, a vast contrast existed between the earlier goals of the abolitionists and the
reality of everyday life for freedmen in the South. This condition persisted until the modern civil rights
movement of the 1950s and 60s.
Questions:
1. Which amendment gave African Americans the right to vote?
2. What were some things that were used to keep African Americans from voting?
3. Were voting laws fair for African Americans voters?
4. How were African Americans living in the south affected by voting laws?
5. What changed the voting conditions for African Americans?
Discussion:
1. What impact did voting laws have on African Americans politically?
2. What impact do you think the laws had on them socially?
3. Do you feel that it was constitutionally right for there to be voting laws after the 15th
amendment was passed?
Carpetbaggers and Scalawags
In an event without historical precedent, former slaves joined with white Republicans to govern the
South. The freedmen, in alliance with carpetbaggers (Northerners who had migrated South during or
after the Civil War) and southern white Republicans derogatorily called scalawags, temporarily gained
power in every Confederate state except Virginia. Altogether, over 600 African Americans served as
legislators in Reconstruction governments (though blacks comprised a majority only in the lower house
of South Carolina's legislature).
According to myth, unscrupulous carpetbaggers from the North and unprincipled scalawags from the
South manipulated the freedmen to gain control of the state governments. Backed by the presence of
federal troops, they embarked on an orgy of corruption, humiliating and impoverishing the helpless
South and unsettling relations between blacks and whites. At last - the myth continues - the nation grew
weary of the corruption and the cost of maintaining troops in the South. The army was withdrawn and
the responsible white citizenry regained control of their governments.
According to this stereotype popularized after Reconstruction, the carpetbaggers were dishonest
fortune seekers whose possession could be put in a satchel. "They are fellows who crawled down South
on the track of our armies...stealing and plundering," said editor Horace Greeley.
Contrary to legend, however, most carpetbaggers were not impoverished opportunists seeking easy
money in the South. Rather they were former soldiers who migrated to the South to seek a livelihood.
They generated hostility because they supported the Republican Party and defended the civil and
political rights of freedmen.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What was a scalawag? How were they viewed?
What was a carpetbagger? How were they viewed?
How many African Americans served as delegates in legislatures?
What were the carpetbaggers and scalawags known for doing in the south?
How did carpetbaggers generate hostility?
Discussion:
How do you think African Americans viewed carpetbaggers and scalawags?
Would these types of people cause a problem in the south? Explain.
Radical Reconstruction
In contrast to the relatively lenient and passive approach of Lincoln and Johnson, the radical
Republicans, the liberal wing of the Republican Party, had a much tougher approach. They were
idealists, many of them driven by an almost religious fervor. They did not accept the commonly held
notion that blacks were inferior and therefore insisted on full political, social and civil rights for the
former slaves. In this sense they were true reformers, in many ways far ahead of their time, and they
had very different ideas about reconstruction from those of Lincoln and Johnson. (How Lincoln’s
thinking on reconstruction might have evolved over time can, of course, never be known.)
The radicals thought Lincoln was “too soft” on the South and wanted to “revolutionize Southern habits,
institutions and manners”; they wanted to see the South rebuilt according to a new order. Northern
Republican newspapers such as the New York Tribune agreed. Radicals believed that the South should
be treated as “conquered provinces,” and that the rebel states had committed “political suicide.” They
claimed that no state governments could exist in the South until Congress restored them under any
conditions it deemed necessary.
Following Lincoln’s death, congressional Republicans held hearings on conditions in the South which
revealed widespread mistreatment of blacks, including random incidents of violence. More formal
attempts at controls, as demonstrated by the Black Codes drawn up in many states, also surfaced. Black
Codes prohibited blacks from owning firearms, required them to be employed or face vagrancy charges,
imposed fines which could be worked off by labor, and placed other restrictions on their freedom. For all
practical purposes, the codes recreated slavery in a form under which the state rather than individuals
purposes owned the slaves. Postwar Southern governing officials understood that the slave codes that
had existed prior to the Thirteenth Amendment had to be repealed. But the new codes went far beyond
what was necessary to remove the former restrictions, and limited the freedom of the former slaves in
the process. (See the Mississippi Code in the Appendix, for example.)
Those factors intensified Radical feelings about a heavy-handed reconstruction process. Congressional
moderates had more modest goals—to protect blacks but not to grant them full equality or any special
favors. Johnson’s reaction to Congressional initiatives, however, eventually drove many moderates into
the radical camp.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What reconstruction efforts did they want to do that would be considered radical?
Which group of people wanted full rights for freed African Americans?
How did Radical Republicans view Lincoln?
What were black codes?
What were the Moderates goals?
Discussion:
1. How did radical ideas impact reconstruction?
2. How did those ideas impact newly freed African Americans?
Freedmen’s Bureau
Freedmen’s Bureau, (1865–72), during the Reconstruction period after the American Civil War, popular
name for the U.S. Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, established by Congress to
provide practical aid to 4,000,000 newly freed black Americans in their transition from slavery to
freedom. Headed by Major General Oliver O. Howard, the Freedmen’s Bureau might be termed the first
federal welfare agency. Despite handicaps of inadequate funds and poorly trained personnel, the
bureau built hospitals for, and gave direct medical assistance to, more than 1,000,000 freedmen. More
than 21,000,000 rations were distributed to impoverished blacks as well as whites.
Its greatest accomplishments were in education: more than 1,000 black schools were built and over
$400,000 spent to establish teacher-training institutions. All major black colleges were either founded
by, or received aid from, the bureau. Less success was achieved in civil rights, for the bureau’s own
courts were poorly organized and short-lived, and only the barest forms of due process of law for
freedmen could be sustained in the civil courts. Its most notable failure concerned the land itself.
Thwarted by President Andrew Johnson’s restoration of abandoned lands to pardoned Southerners and
by the adamant refusal of Congress to consider any form of land redistribution, the bureau was forced
to oversee sharecropping arrangements that inevitably became oppressive. Congress, preoccupied with
other national interests and responding to the continued hostility of white Southerners, terminated the
bureau in July 1872.
Questions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
What was the freedmen’s bureau?
What was their purpose?
What was their greatest accomplishment?
What did they not have success with?
What did the bureau have to oversee?
Discussion:
How does a program like the Freedmen’s Bureau help former slaves?
Do you think this program was important to the transition of former slaves?