Reconstruction Era: 1865-1877, End of Slavery & Freedmen's Bureau - Essay Sample

Introduction

There were many changes regarding race issues during the Reconstruction Era from 1865-1877, most of which was a positive development. Firstly, the Civil War ended and unlocked the way to some incredible things. The 13th Amendment was enacted in 1865, which eventually ended slavery. This was just the starting point of many constitutional rights for black people. In the same year, Congress established the Freedmen’s Bureau to assist in the integration of newly freed former slaves into society. They were granted more basic human needs, such as a food supply along with hospital treatment (Brown, 2016). Education was vital to the freed slaves, which necessitated the construction of thousands of schools and even a few higher education institutions. Most of them find jobs and land alongside many other sources of survival. Not all, unfortunately, believed it was a good strategy. This prompted the white southerners and some leaders to make other complaints.

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Following, was the 14th Amendment, because just being free was merely not quite enough. They were still not acknowledged the same as others. The first section of the clause offered citizenship to any person born or granted citizenship in the United States (except indigenous Americans), ensuring that black people were now officially full American citizens. The final step during the Reconstruction of the confederation was the 15th Amendment in 1870, which necessitated states not to deny anyone deciding to vote rights based on skin color, social class, or previous enslavement (Richardson, 2017). It was not the end of both election suppression and inequality. Women also had no voting privileges, and Asian immigrants or people who were not educated were not eligible to vote even because they were too poor to pay ballot initiatives.

Consequences of Industrialization

Industrialization was a period of mass manufacturing of consumer goods not produced by human beings or animals but by machinery. It has also presented other technological innovations, some of which are of immense value and are being used date using to this day (Brown, 2019). While it appears like plenty of goods are being manufactured, and all these significant innovations would be a positive and smart time for everyone, cause, and effect, unfortunately, arose with all this. Indeed, there have been positive benefits, but there have been negative ones as well.

While the developments were fantastic and most useful, one of the more detrimental consequences of this enormous industrial revolution was that the phone and fax machine enabled people to engage in conversation at home, by printing messages and communicating over the phone, away from family and family members (Richardson, 2017). So there was no need for verbal communication as it was before the development of devices.

The Rise of the Progressive Movement

Question One

Protestants established the Social Gospel movement, headed by the ministers Rauschenbusch, Gladden, and Sheldon. They presumed that they would work their way to paradise by pushing for equal treatment for everyone. This inspired many individuals to talk about inequalities in areas like the place of work and the federal court. Ben Lindsey, a lawyer though it morally wrong that two young teenage boys who had accused of stealing things had been put in jail without a trail (Richardson, 2017). As a consequence, he and his wife strived to make a young offenders court system and formulated reforms enacted by many states and countries across the world. Fake news outlets like Sinclair wrote numerous publications speaking about the oppressions in different sectors, such as poor working conditions and excruciatingly long working days.

Question Two

Prohibition was one of the significant impacts of the Progressive Movement. Between the two groups, the Anti Saloon Group and the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, they caused sufficient severe outrage to get the public’s attention that alcohol consumption enforces violent acts and leading in poverty and problems with accomplishing one’s tasks effectively. Therefore, more states pushed in the course of restricting sales of alcohol, and a third of the states had outlawed alcohol by the year 1900 (Tuffnell, 2019). Regrettably, not everyone listened, which only helped progressives strive much harder to push for a central aim of a total ban. The 18th Amendment was eventually enacted, making all intoxicating drug unlawful for selling, manufacturing, or transportation.

Also, Progressivism was profoundly influenced by women’s suffrage. Harriot Stanton Blatch, child of Elizabeth Stanton, a 19th-century feminist civil rights activist, joined the women’s trade union and primarily advocated for women’s interests, creating the 1907 Equality League of Self-Supporting Women. As women worked, whether for jobs or household chores, she felt it was appropriate for women to have the power to vote to preserve women’s interests in their economic positions safe (Richardson, 2017). As of 1912, nine Western states permitted women to vote in municipal and state elections. They worked hard through writing, conferences, and demonstrations for national rights. And in 1920, the 19th Amendment was established due to women’s work during World War 1 and revealed to lawmakers how necessary women were to help with more general roles, and eventually, they could vote freely.

Question Three

American politics has always been a broad area of debate, particularly in the nation’s early days. There still tends to be something that can be improved differently or modifications that can be done when relating to politics, and it was no exception during the Progressive awakening that is what was composed in this whole period (Tuffnell, 2019). The development of the 17th Amendment has had a very significant effect. Instead of letting each state assembly select its senators, becoming exhausted of all political wrongdoing, now the citizens have been willing to vote on who they needed as their two senators.

Role of American Imperialism

Hawaiian Annexation

Many conflicts occurred when the United States began developing its imperial power. One such dispute was the Hawaii Annexation. They were motivated by economic, military, and diplomatic grounds and also had religious support (Du Bois, 2017). The missionary had always tried to spread their faith and show how it was different than what they practiced at the time. This encouraged many people to come to Hawaii in the name of spreading their gospel, which led to Hawaiian Annexation.

World War I

Also, American imperialism played a significant role during World War 1. This became a necessity because they wanted a workforce like the military to create an imperial power and rule and hold the territory they conquered. Hostilities were established between these countries due to American imperialism, as many countries competed for the region they both desired (Brown, 2016). After that, many countries looked for alliances to feel confident within themselves. This played a vital role in the outset of World War 1, as countries attempted to outsmart each other.

References

Brown, E. C. (2016). Pedagogies of US Imperialism: Racial Education from Reconstruction to the Progressive Era (Doctoral dissertation).

Du Bois, W. E. B. (Ed.). (2017). Black Reconstruction in America: Toward a history of the part which black folk played in the attempt to reconstruct democracy in America, 1860-1880. Routledge.

Richardson, H. C., Nichols, C. M., & Unger, N. C. (2017). Reconstructing the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. In A Companion to the Gilded Age and Progressive Era (pp. 7-20). Wiley Blackwell.

Tuffnell, S. (2019). Colin D. Moore. American Imperialism and the State, 1893–1921; Nathan Jessen. Populism and Imperialism: Politics, Culture, and Foreign Policy in the American West, 1890–1900.