After the abolition of slavery, it would hardly be true to say that life suddenly improved for Black Americans. Far from it, in fact things could be well argued which suggest that the situation became far worse before it even remotely became better.
Regular public beatings and lynching through 'white supremacy' organisations such as the Ku Klux Klan were a daily occurrence and segregation between Blacks and Whites became widespread. Tiny wages and poor accommodation combined together to result in a terrible standard of living where many people found it difficult to see how they could possibly survive but which reasons can be placed above all others to explain these consequences?
Although slavery had been abolished, the attitudes of the southern state governments did not change. It was nearly impossible to shake of the notion of being ex-slaves and although on paper they were not as such, this is how they were still viewed and treated. The discriminating Jim Crow laws still existed restricting voting rights, education rights, access to trade unions and the ability to serve on juries. I personally feel that this contributed heavily to the public opinion that the Blacks were still somehow inferior. I think that if all of these laws were reversed together with the abolition of slavery, simultaneously, the public attitude to this race would have not been so hostile. I am not suggesting for one second that no racism would have existed, merely that this just encouraged the prejudiced views. The "Jim Crow" laws furthered what was already happening and enforced the total segregation of race on all public transport, footpaths, schooling, health care and religion. Yes these laws were later abolished but this had the unforeseen effect of further increasing hostility and resentment towards the Blacks. The Americans were not used to seeing Black men giving them competition in terms of jobs, politics etc. Not only were they not used to it, they did not like it! If the discriminating laws had never existed, I see far less hatred taking place and the whites would have been far more willing to allow the integration of Blacks into society.
Regular public beatings and lynching through 'white supremacy' organisations such as the Ku Klux Klan were a daily occurrence and segregation between Blacks and Whites became widespread. Tiny wages and poor accommodation combined together to result in a terrible standard of living where many people found it difficult to see how they could possibly survive but which reasons can be placed above all others to explain these consequences?
Although slavery had been abolished, the attitudes of the southern state governments did not change. It was nearly impossible to shake of the notion of being ex-slaves and although on paper they were not as such, this is how they were still viewed and treated. The discriminating Jim Crow laws still existed restricting voting rights, education rights, access to trade unions and the ability to serve on juries. I personally feel that this contributed heavily to the public opinion that the Blacks were still somehow inferior. I think that if all of these laws were reversed together with the abolition of slavery, simultaneously, the public attitude to this race would have not been so hostile. I am not suggesting for one second that no racism would have existed, merely that this just encouraged the prejudiced views. The "Jim Crow" laws furthered what was already happening and enforced the total segregation of race on all public transport, footpaths, schooling, health care and religion. Yes these laws were later abolished but this had the unforeseen effect of further increasing hostility and resentment towards the Blacks. The Americans were not used to seeing Black men giving them competition in terms of jobs, politics etc. Not only were they not used to it, they did not like it! If the discriminating laws had never existed, I see far less hatred taking place and the whites would have been far more willing to allow the integration of Blacks into society.
