What did Congress plan to do for the slaves?

The Republican Congress during and after the Civil War passed three constitutional amendments, called the "Reconstruction Amendments," that ended slavery and extended many civil rights to black Americans.

How did Reconstruction change the South?

Among the other achievements of Reconstruction were the South's first state-funded public school systems, fairer tax laws, laws against racial discrimination in public transportation and accommodations, and ambitious economic development programs (including aid to railroads and other businesses).

The state legislatures also began to pass laws that limited the freedom of the former slaves. These laws mirrored those of the colonial era, which placed severe restrictions on both slaves and freed blacks. None of these groups could vote, sit on juries, travel freely, or work in professions of their choice.

What changed after the Civil War for slaves?

The Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 freed African Americans in rebellious states, and after the Civil War, the Thirteenth Amendment freed all American slaves, wherever they were. Former slaves of all ages took advantage of the opportunity to become literate.

Why would Southerners oppose the education of African Americans?

Most white southern slaveholders were adamantly opposed to educating their slaves because they feared that an educated slave population would threaten their authority. Williams documents a series of statutes that criminalized any person who taught slaves or supported their efforts to educate themselves.

What would the South have to do to become a member of the Union again?

Southern states were required to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment before being readmitted to the union. The Fifteenth Amendment guaranteed African American men the right to vote. Most of the documents in this section are related to suffrage and how voting actually took place in southern states.

Why did the southern states have to ratify the Fifteenth Amendment?

Southern states were required to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment before being readmitted to the union. The Fifteenth Amendment guaranteed African American men the right to vote.

After the American Civil War and the subsequent abolition of slavery in the 1860s, the Reconstruction Amendments to the United States Constitution granted emancipation and constitutional rights of citizenship to all African Americans, most of whom had recently been enslaved.

How did the Civil War affect African Americans?

Congress also passed two amendments to the Constitution. The Fourteenth Amendment made African Americans citizens and protected citizens from discriminatory state laws. Southern states were required to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment before being readmitted to the union. The Fifteenth Amendment guaranteed African American men the right to vote.

What did the southern states have to do before they were readmitted to the Union?