Freedom: A History of Us | What is Freedom?
Summary
TLDRThe video script explores the aftermath of the American Civil War and the Reconstruction period, focusing on the challenges faced by newly freed Black Americans. It highlights the political tension between President Andrew Johnson and Congress, the implementation of Black Codes, and the passing of key constitutional amendments. Despite initial progress, the script delves into the rise of segregation, racial violence, and the eventual rollback of civil rights advances. The narrative reflects the enduring struggle for equality and the unresolved question of freedom in post-Civil War America.
Takeaways
- 🗽 The aftermath of the Civil War left the South in ruins, with white Southerners feeling confused and angry, while the region was physically and economically devastated.
- 🤝 Reconstruction initially brought positive changes, including the passage of the 13th Amendment, the establishment of the Freedman's Bureau, and efforts to integrate Black citizens into society.
- 💔 Despite the efforts, Black Southerners faced systemic barriers through new 'Black Codes' that limited their freedoms, keeping them in conditions close to slavery.
- 🎓 The push for civil rights included access to education and the right to vote, with many former slaves seeing land ownership as a vital part of their newfound freedom.
- 🗳️ Congress passed landmark legislation like the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the 14th Amendment, ensuring equal protection under the law and granting Black men voting rights.
- ⚖️ Despite early progress, President Andrew Johnson’s opposition to civil rights and leniency toward the South undermined many Reconstruction efforts.
- 📜 For the first time in U.S. history, Black individuals were elected to political office, including Hiram Revels becoming the first Black U.S. Senator in 1870.
- 🔨 Radical Republicans in Congress clashed with President Johnson over the direction of Reconstruction, leading to his impeachment, though he narrowly avoided removal from office.
- 🗡️ Violence against Black citizens, such as lynchings by the Ku Klux Klan, became increasingly common in response to Reconstruction reforms, undermining Black progress.
- 🚂 The Plessy v. Ferguson decision in 1896 legalized segregation under the 'separate but equal' doctrine, effectively ending Reconstruction and ushering in a new era of racial segregation.
Q & A
What is the significance of the Civil War in the context of the script?
-The Civil War marked a major turning point in American history, as it led to the abolition of slavery and the Reconstruction era. The script highlights how the war devastated the South, led to the emancipation of four million black people, and created deep tensions between the North and South.
What were the 'Black Codes' mentioned in the script?
-The Black Codes were laws enacted by Southern states after the Civil War to restrict the freedom of African Americans and force them back into a labor system similar to slavery. These codes aimed to limit civil rights and economic opportunities for black people.
How did President Andrew Johnson's policies affect Reconstruction?
-Andrew Johnson opposed many of the Reconstruction efforts aimed at securing rights for former slaves. He vetoed the expansion of the Freedmen’s Bureau and allowed Southern states to enact Black Codes, effectively undermining the progress towards racial equality.
What was the role of Congress in opposing President Johnson's stance on Reconstruction?
-Congress, particularly the Republican majority, opposed Johnson’s leniency toward the South and his rejection of civil rights for blacks. They passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the Reconstruction Act of 1867, overriding Johnson's vetoes to ensure that Southern states reformed their constitutions and granted African Americans more rights.
Who was Thaddeus Stevens, and what were his views on Reconstruction?
-Thaddeus Stevens was a leading Republican in Congress who believed that the Southern states should not be readmitted to the Union until African Americans were given full rights, including the right to vote and land ownership. He called for a complete restructuring of Southern society.
What impact did the 14th and 15th Amendments have on African Americans during Reconstruction?
-The 14th Amendment guaranteed equal protection under the law for all citizens, and the 15th Amendment granted African American men the right to vote. These amendments were significant steps towards racial equality, although their enforcement was inconsistent.
What were the primary goals of former slaves after the Civil War, according to the script?
-Former slaves sought to escape the injustices of slavery, such as forced labor and family separation. They wanted civil rights, the ability to vote, access to education, and land ownership to gain economic independence and integrate into American society.
How did Southern whites react to the Reconstruction policies?
-Many Southern whites were angry and confused after the Civil War. They resented the changes imposed by Reconstruction, including the loss of their previous social hierarchy. White supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan emerged to oppose the reforms and intimidate black citizens.
What role did Ulysses S. Grant play in Reconstruction?
-As president, Ulysses S. Grant supported civil rights for African Americans and backed Congressional Reconstruction policies. He oversaw the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1875, which aimed to outlaw discrimination in public places.
How did Reconstruction come to an end, and what were its consequences?
-Reconstruction ended when President Rutherford B. Hayes withdrew federal troops from the South in 1877, leaving African Americans vulnerable to Southern white supremacist groups. This allowed the rise of segregation and disenfranchisement, leading to a rollback of many of the civil rights gains made during Reconstruction.
Outlines
🎵 The Longing for Freedom
The paragraph begins with a lyrical expression of a desire for freedom, both personal and collective. The singer wishes to break free from chains and express thoughts and love freely, symbolizing a broader yearning for liberation and equality. It transitions into a historical context, post-Civil War, where families mourn the losses, and Southern society, once prosperous, is left in ruins. White Southerners struggle to rebuild their lives amid devastation, while Northerners grapple with anger and demands for punishment of the South. This sets the stage for the complexities of post-war reconstruction.
💔 The Challenges of Southern Reconstruction
This paragraph highlights the immediate post-war reconstruction efforts. The 13th Amendment is passed, formally ending slavery, and the Freedman's Bureau is established to provide aid to freed black people. However, President Andrew Johnson, a Southern Democrat, begins to dismantle efforts for equality by vetoing the expansion of the bureau and allowing the South to impose restrictive Black Codes. These laws seek to limit black freedoms and restore a system that mimics slavery. This tension between federal efforts for equality and local resistance sets the tone for the Reconstruction era.
📜 Political Struggles and African-American Empowerment
Congress steps in to assert control over Reconstruction, overriding Johnson's vetoes and passing the Civil Rights Bill of 1866. For the first time, African Americans are elected to Congress, symbolizing a radical shift in Southern society. The 14th Amendment guarantees equal protection under the law, and the Reconstruction Act of 1867 ensures black men can vote. This paragraph outlines the transformative yet contentious nature of these political changes, with Southern resistance and Congressional efforts to impose lasting reforms in the South.
⚔️ Rise of White Supremacy and the Ku Klux Klan
This section describes the violent backlash from white supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan, who terrorize black citizens to maintain racial hierarchies. The Klan uses fear tactics such as lynchings, whippings, and murder to suppress black political participation and social mobility. Despite the efforts of Reconstruction, this growing violence and Southern resistance pose a serious threat to the gains made in civil rights for African Americans, highlighting the fragility of these victories.
🚪 Segregation and the Collapse of Reconstruction
The final paragraph details the collapse of Reconstruction as Southern white leaders regain power and begin to systematically dismantle the rights of African Americans. The Civil Rights Act of 1875 is nullified, ushering in an era of legal segregation with the Plessy v. Ferguson decision, which endorses the concept of 'separate but equal.' Public spaces become segregated, and black citizens are denied basic freedoms. The era's promise of racial equality fades, as figures like W.E.B. Du Bois lament the reversal of progress, comparing the situation of African Americans to a return to bondage.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Reconstruction
💡Freedmen's Bureau
💡Black Codes
💡13th Amendment
💡Andrew Johnson
💡14th Amendment
💡Civil Rights Act of 1866
💡Ku Klux Klan
💡15th Amendment
💡Jim Crow Laws
Highlights
The song 'I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free' conveys deep emotions about freedom, equality, and the desire to break free from oppression.
After the Civil War, Southern cities like Charleston, South Carolina, were left in ruins with vacant homes and desolate streets.
White Southerners, devastated by the loss of their 'elegant Southern lifestyle,' struggled with the economic and social destruction caused by the war.
Mississippi in 1866 spent one-third of its revenues on artificial limbs for veterans who returned home wounded, highlighting the physical cost of war.
4 million black Southerners, newly freed after the Civil War, were left without money, property, or opportunities, facing significant obstacles.
Frederick Douglass emphasized that while former slaves were free from their masters, they still faced oppression and exclusion from society.
The Black Codes passed by Southern states aimed to severely restrict the rights of newly freed African Americans, limiting their freedoms and forcing them into a dependent labor class.
The Civil Rights Act of 1866, passed by Congress, nullified the Black Codes and was a landmark law in the fight for racial equality.
President Andrew Johnson's opposition to Reconstruction policies caused deep rifts, and Congress took control of Reconstruction, passing the Reconstruction Act of 1867.
The 14th Amendment, passed by Congress, was one of the most significant changes to the Constitution, ensuring equal protection under the law for all citizens.
For the first time in U.S. history, African Americans were elected to public office, including 16 representatives in Congress, signaling a significant shift in American politics.
Violent groups like the Ku Klux Klan began targeting black Southerners during Reconstruction, using terror and violence to undermine progress toward equality.
President Ulysses S. Grant supported civil rights, leading to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1875, outlawing discrimination in public spaces.
The end of Reconstruction in 1877 led to the withdrawal of federal troops from the South, which allowed white supremacy to reassert itself through segregation and disenfranchisement.
The 1896 Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson legalized segregation through the 'separate but equal' doctrine, which would dominate the South for decades.
W.E.B. Du Bois summarized the failure of Reconstruction as a brief moment of freedom for former slaves, followed by a return to oppression and systemic inequality.
Transcripts
I wish I knew how it would feel to be
free I wish I could break all the chains
holding
me I wish I could say all the things
that I should say say I'm loud say I'm
clear for the whole round world
[Music]
I wish I could
share all the love that's in my
heart remove all the bars that
keep us
aart I wish you could know what it means
to be me then you'd see and agree that
every man should be
[Music]
free the Civil War was over all across
the land mothers and fathers buried
their sons wept and tried to forgive the
enemy now that all were once again
pledging allegiance to the same
flag white Southerners were angry and
Confused their elegant Southern
lifestyle had been
destroyed journalist Sydney and
described Charleston South Carolina a
city of ruins desolation and vacant
houses of rotting Wares deserted
warehouses and grass grown
streets that is Charleston the beauty
and pride of the city are
dead a generation of white Southern men
had been
decimated those who came home brought
wounds with
them in 186 6 the year after the war's
end Mississippi spent 1th of its
revenues on artificial arms and legs for
returning
veterans their homes their farms and
livestock were gone and now their widows
were forced to pick up the pieces we had
no cattle Hogs sheep or horses or
anything else the barns were all burned
chimneys standing without houses and
houses standing without roofs or doors
or Windows
Northerners were angry too the South had
started the Civil War and many thought
it should be punished Pennsylvania
Congressman thus Stevens called The
Rebel leaders traitors and said that
they ought to be hanged four years of
bloody and expensive war waged against
the United States by 11 states we hold
it the duty of government to inflict
punishment on the rebel belligerant and
so weaken their hands that they can
never again endanger the
union 4 million black Southerners were
now freed men and freed
women what were they to do now where
were they to
go Isaiah wears was a prominent black
spokesperson let no man think we ask for
people's pity or
commiseration what we do ask is fairness
and equal opportunities in the Battle of
life we are friends of our country we
have fought to defend her let us have
the same chances as those who have
fought against
her but as Frederick Douglas observed
Southern blacks had major obstacles
before them a former slave was free from
the individual Master but the slave of
society he had neither money property
nor friends he was free from the old
plantation but he had nothing but the
dusty road under his feet
to some extent freedom for former slaves
just meant getting out from under all
the injustices of slavery no longer
being whipped no longer being ordered
about by whites no longer having their
families broken up having access to
education being able to move about
freely all those regulations of slavery
would no longer apply but they also saw
Freedom as incorporation into American
society they wanted the right to vote
they wanted equality before the law and
many of them also thought land should
come with freedom no longer being
dependent on whites for their livelihood
but having that autonomy that came with
land ownership so their notion of
Freedom was a very expansive thing a
real change in all the aspects of their
lives Millie Freeman was a former slave
it seemed like it took a long time for
freedom to come everything just kept on
like it was we heard that lots of slaves
was getting land and some m to sit up
for themselves I never know anyone got
land or mules or
[Music]
nothing the Reconstruction of the South
got off to a good start the passage of
the 13th Amendment in late
1865 made slavery permanently
unconstitutional the fredman's bureau
begun back under Abraham l Lincoln now
distributed food clothing and shelter to
black people all across the South and it
helped open schools for former
slaves but unlike Lincoln the new
President Andrew Johnson wasn't
interested in former slaves he was a
southerner and a Democrat and had been a
slave owner
himself in February 1866 he vetoed an
expansion of the fredman's bureau and
then looked the other way as Southern
leaders instituted New Black Codes that
restricted the freedom of black
people at the same time he called for
the welcoming of white Southern leaders
back into the national government this
is a country for white men and by God as
long as I am president it shall be a
government for white men I cannot take
the position that a state which
attempted to succeed is out of the Union
I shall be in favor of the state
resuming their former relations to the
government in all respects
President Andrew Johnson basically gave
the white South a free hand in
organizing new government didn't give
blacks any rights and said okay Southern
whites can form new governments and
these new governments passed these black
codes to regulate the freedom of the
former slaves and basically they tried
to put them in a condition as close to
slavery as possible using the Law to
force blacks to go back to work on the
plantations they didn't have civil
rights they couldn't go to court they
couldn't testify they couldn't vote the
Black Codes try to make the status of
the former slaves that of dependent
Plantation laborers under the control of
the white
population encouraged by President
Johnson's strong support Southern whites
began reinstating many of their old
leaders electing former high-ranking
Confederate officers to the US House and
Senate an outraged Congress where
Republicans outnumbered Democrats by
almost 4 to1 refused to seat them
instead they passed the Civil Rights
bill of
1866 effectively nullifying the Black
Codes on March 27th President Andrew
Johnson vetoed the
bill I am right I know I am right and I
am damned if I do not adhere to it the
only way a vetoed bill can become a law
is if 2third of Congress overrides The
veto in April
1866 2/3 did it was the first time in
American history that an important piece
of legislation was passed over a
president's
veto Carl schz was a republican
activist the first gun of the war
between the president and Congress was
fired it declared that the
Reconstruction of the late Rebel States
was the business not of the president
alone but of
Congress the republicans in Congress who
opposed President Johnson were led by
thus
Stevens Stevens believed that the
southern states should not be admitted
back into the Union until blacks were
given the vote land and guarantees of
equality under the law any call for a
total restructuring of Southern Society
the foundation of their institutions
must be broken and relay or all our
blood and treasure has been spent in
vain in 1866 Congress wrote the 14th
Amendment it was the most important
change made to the Constitution since
the Bill of Rights and it said that the
states must provide equal protection
under the law to all their
citizens no government can be free that
does not allow all its citizens to
participate in the formation and
execution of her laws every other
government is a
despotism in 1867 Congress took charge
of reconstruction removing it from
President Johnson's hands it forcibly
divided the South into military
districts then passed a sweeping Reform
Bill the Reconstruction Act of 1867
required each Southern State to write a
new state constitution that reflected
the amended US Constitution and it said
that while many former Confederate
leaders could not vote all black men
could the Act was widely embraced as
Harper's Weekly
reported though the president sees in it
the destruction of the Constitution and
the end of civil liberty the loyal
American people see in it the salvation
of the Constitution and the beginning of
civil liberty that is the meaning of the
Reconstruction
Act for the first time in American
history blacks were now elected to
political office 16 African-Americans
were elected to congress representing
almost every state of the former
Confederacy and in Mississippi hyam
Revels became one of two black US
senators taking the seat of of the
former Confederate President Jefferson
Davis the day he was sworn in the Senate
galleries were packed as a Philadelphia
newspaper
noted never since the birth of the
Republic has such an audience been
assembled under one single roof it
Embraces the greatest and the least
American
citizens as Hyrum Rebels walked down the
aisle everyone
stood then slowly but steadily people
began to
[Music]
cheer President Johnson was furious at
Congress for boxing him in and taking
away much of his power by now his
opponents were calling him the dead dog
of the white
house within a period of less than a
year Congress has attempted to strip the
executive department of its essential
power I have been abused I have been
slandered I have been
maligned Johnson especially opposed
congress's Reconstruction Act as Charles
nordoff of the evening posts
sarcastically
editorialized he expressed the most
bitter hatred of the measure in all its
parts declaring that the white people of
the South poor quiet unoffending
harmless were to be trodden Under Foot
to
protect he is a pigheaded man with only
one idea a bitter opposition to
universal
suffrage in 1867 disgusted with
Johnson's attitudes the republicans in
Congress decided to get rid of him for 2
months the House of Representatives
debated finally house members voted to
impeach Andrew Johnson
impeachment of me for violating the
Constitution damn them have I not been
struggling ever since I have been in
this chair to uphold the Constitution
which they trample
underfoot now the matter went to the
Senate only they could try a president
thus Stevens was one of those who
presented congress's case I accuse him
in the name of the House of
Representatives of having perpetrated a
foul off defense against his country he
has sought to convert a land of Freedom
into a land of
slaves this people have put the chief of
traitors on trial and now demand
Judgment of his
misconduct if President Johnson were
convicted of high crimes and
misdemeanors he would be thrown out of
office on Saturday May 16th the vote
began as expected all the Democrats
voted not guilty
Republican after Republican voted
guilty but behind the scenes Johnson had
been making deals with several
Republican senators in return for the
promise not to vote for
impeachment the final tally was 35 to19
just one vote short of the total needed
for
conviction President Johnson would
remain in
[Music]
office
in 1869 the year after Andrew Johnson's
acquit Congress passed the 15th
Amendment it gave black men the right to
vote all across the
country in the south social reforms were
now spreading
quickly black children were enrolling in
4,000 new Public Schools across the
south at least nine black colleges were
opened state legislatures were being
integrated it was a civil rights
Revolution and it was forced on the
south by the Republican control Congress
as Carl schz
explained the Republic emancipated the
slaves and promised them Freedom Forever
the protection of their rights is
therefore a matter of Duty this Duty
will present itself again and again in
legislation directly interfering with
the southern states for the southern
people duded by false hopes are still
struggling to restore the old Order of
Things furious with the north for
interfering in its Society Southern hate
groups like The Klux Clan began Waging
War on former slaves lynchings rare
before the Civil War now became
increasingly
common a southern black man named Ben
Johnson witnessed one of the Clan's
crimes it was a cold night when the
klues CED and drugs AED and out of bed
they cared him down in the woods and
whooped him it throws him in the pond
Cindy ain't been seen
since black citizens of Frankfurt
Kentucky sent a petition to
Congress we believe you're not familiar
with the Klux Clans riding nightly over
the country and in the county towns
spreading Terror wherever they go by
robbing whipping ravishing and killing
our people without
provocation we have been been
law-abiding citizens pay our tax and in
many parts of the state our people have
been driven from the polls refuse the
right to
vote in 1869 the Civil War hero ulyses S
Grant became
president unlike Johnson Grant cared
deeply about American
blacks and with his Support over the
next years Congress passed the Civil
Rights Act of
1875 outlawing discrimination in hotels
theaters and amusement parks it was the
last great legislation of
reconstruction but just a year later
Grant's successor Rutherford B Hayes
ordered Federal soldiers to be pulled
out of the South he said he believed the
promises of Southern whites that they
would protect black rights my judgment
was that the time had come to put an end
to bayonet rule to wipe out the color
line to abolish sectionalism and bring
peace the Army was withdrawn because I
believed did a wise thing to
do but the southern promises proved
worthless and no one was left there to
enforce civil rights for
African-Americans reconstruction was
over reconstruction was a great
opportunity to really build a new
Society in the South From the Ashes of
slavery and to for the first time really
bring African-Americans fully into the
realm of American
Freedom you might say that the amazing
thing is that it was tried at all just
two or three years after the ending of
slavery it didn't succeed it was
overthrown a new system of white
supremacy was enforced in the South it
left to The Next Century really this to
work out this question of whether there
is going to be a racial boundary around
the concept of freedom in American Life
in 1883 the Supreme Court made a fateful
decision they voted to nullify the Civil
Rights Act of
1875 that meant that from now on there
could once again be whites only hotels
restaurants barber shops and
theaters black leader Henry mcneel
Turner knew he had been betrayed by the
nation's highest court it was a hard
task to get an enactment through
Congress that contemplated anything like
civil rights now a republican Supreme
Court has declared the whole thing null
and void leaving the nigle in a
condition compared with which the Surfs
of Russia are
Lords I have not deserted the Republican
Party the Republican party has deserted
me and 7 million of my
[Music]
race and an aging Frederick Douglas now
a public official in Washington
expressed his disgust us men talk about
the Negro problem there is no negro
problem the problem is whether American
people have loyalty enough honor enough
patriotism enough to live up to their
own
[Music]
Constitution we Negroes love our country
we fought for it we ask only that we be
treated as well as those who fought
against
[Music]
it
the color line in America applied also
to trains which increasingly separated
passengers on the basis of
race in 1892 a 30-year-old black man
named Homer pie was arrested for sitting
in a wh's only railroad
car arguing that his civil rights had
been violated a Citizens committee took
his case all the way to the Supreme
Court the justices listened to the
arguments in the the case of pie v
Ferguson and in 1896 they made a
ruling Justice John Marshall Harland
wrote in favor of Homer pie in view of
the constitution in the eye of the law
there is in this country no Superior
dominant ruling class of citizens there
is no cast here our constitution is
colorblind and neither knows nor
tolerates classes among
citizens but Harland was a lone voice on
the court and all the other justices
voted against pie Justice Henry billing
Brown wrote the decision that spoke for
the
majority the 14th Amendment calls for
the absolute equality of the two races
before the law but it could not have
been intended to abolish distinctions
based upon color or to enforce social
equality or a co-mingling of the
races what the this meant was that
though the races were equal before the
law local laws could prevent people of
different races from
mingling in other words if public
facilities were equal they could be
separate and so the age of legalized
segregation began the Ohio legislator
Benjamin Arnett described the effect of
the Court's ruling I have traveled in
this free country for 20 hours without
anything to eat not because I had no
money to pay pay for it but because I
was colored other passengers of lighter
Hue had breakfast dinner and supper in
traveling we are thrown in Jim Crow cars
Deni the privilege of buying a birth in
the sleeping coach this foe of my race
stands at the schoolhouse door and
separates the children by reasons of
color and deny to those who have a
visible ad mixture of African blood in
them the blessings of a graded school
and equal
privileges over at a period of just 30
years the opportunity for Freedom opened
up by the Civil War had been
lost WB deoy summed up the tragic
failure of the era the slave went free
stood a brief moment in the sun then
moved back again toward
[Music]
slavery like a bird in the
sky how sweet
it would be if by my heart I could
fly so to the Sun and look down at the
sea then i'
[Music]
sing
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