America After The Civil War Documentary

The United States government was going through a change post-Civil War in every community. Previous slaves were officially free men and women during the Reconstruction Era, and many Americans were unhappy about it. Many amazing opportunities were finally opening up for black people because of the victory of the Northern Union and the completion of the 14th Amendment. This documentary did a good job touching on those opportunities, but it mainly focuses on the effect that it took on white people. Most importantly it touches on African Americans finally becoming involved in the government.

Joseph Rainey: The first African-American Government Official in the U.S

I learned that just about 10 years after The Civil War almost 1,500 African Americans held positions of power in the U.S Government. Fourteen of them were members of the U.S Congress and two of them were U.S Senators. Although this was great for America, not everyone thought this was. Even after the 14th amendment white people would still become shocked to hear they can't curse out or abuse black people and just get away with it like they used to. Also, following The Civil War was the creation of a horrible white supremacist group called the KKK (Ku Klux Clan). They were much stronger in the late 1800s and early 1900s than today but are still around. The group's main goal is to spite, attack, and to even kill any person of color they see because they believe they should have never been given rights. 

The Ku Klux Kiddies'

The Reconstruction Era should have been a glorious time of rejoicing for freed black slaves but instead, it came with danger. A good example of this is when a white man once said "any gain by a black man deprives a white man." Basically saying that every opportunity or accomplishment a black man took at the time was supposed to be for a white man. Black people at the time stayed together despite all of this happening and they had their places of worship to help them. The documentary stated that "churches became a cornerstone of the black community" and I believe that this was very important to them. In the end, this idea of discrimination has never stopped since the end of The Civil War because of the history we keep on creating.

RECONSTRUCTION: AMERICA AFTER THE CIVIL WAR