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The conditions of African Americans from 1860 to early 1900 were very poor. Not much changed in the forty year span from 1860 – 1900. In 1860 90% of African Americans were living in the South, most couldn’t read or write, were not allowed to serve on juries, and were slaves on plantations. In 1900 everything was exactly the same except African Americans were no longer defined as slaves but as workers who couldn’t quit. Three Amendments were added to the constitution during the period of reconstruction after the Civil War. The Amendments were meant to secure the rights of African Americans. The first was the Thirteenth Amendment, which made slavery illegal. The next explosive Amendment was the Fourteenth, which made African Americans citizens. The third Amendment that was added after the Civil War was the Fifteenth, which gave African American males the right to vote. In the future though the Supreme Court would make many detrimental rulings that took away a lot of the Amendments power to protect African Americans and their rights. Which was there original intent. President Lincoln was thinking ahead, he saw that the North would probably win the war and wanted to be ready with a plan for reconstruction. He essential had two main problems the first was that the North and South hated each other and his other problem was that when slavery ended there would be four million African Americans displaced. Lincoln came up with the 10% plan. The first thing he proposed was the replacement of majority rule with “loyal rule” in southern governments. Then he wanted to pardon all ex-confederates except the highest-ranking civilian officers. He then proposed when 10% of the voting population in the 1860 election had taken an oath and established a government it would be recognized. The country never got the chance to see if Lincoln’s plan would work because he would be shot and killed and replaced with President Andrew Johnson. Johnson’s ideas about reconstruction differed from Lincoln’s and Johnson angered many people.
Approximate Word count = 1348
Approximate Pages = 5.4
(250 words per page double spaced)
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