At the end of slavery black Americans reacted happily. After many years of slavery finally over, they felt releaved, with their freedom finally to themselves, where as at the same time they felt they wanted harsh revenge. The black Americans had been treated with no respect and had suffered for many years. When it was all over the slaves were extremely glad and they began to live a pain free life. Many black Americans were still treated differently just because of the colour of their skin.
Black people contributed to the Civil War by helping in lots of different ways. Black soldiers got paid less even though they were risking their lives. Black soldiers got paid $7 and white soldiers got paid $13, the black soldiers were 10% of the union army. Another 200,000 people served as labourers, cooks and nurses. After the Civil War 17 black soldiers and 4 black sailors were awarded the congressional medal of honour. During the Civil War lots of black people contributed because they wanted to be free.
The disadvantages blacks faced after the Civil War were that half the US prison population is black, one in twelve of the total population is black. 67% of black families earn less than the USA’s average family income. White family income: $39,000. Black family income: $21,550. 38 of the top 50 companies in America have no black people on their board of directors. The advantages blacks faced after the Civil War were that blacks were treated much better. In 1984 only 20% of students in southern states attended segregated schools. Blacks are a minority of drug users but a majority of those sentenced for drug offences.
Martin Luther King started freedom rides and published his own story about freedom. He also travelled around India to learn more about Gandhi’s views on non-violent protests. His views on the abolition of slavery were that it was a great idea. His famous speech “I have a dream” tells you that he is against slavery because he has a dream that one day his four children will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.
Malcolm X was a militant leader of the Nation of Islam, also known as the Black Muslims, in the 1950s and early 1960s. Malcolm X created a secular nationalist group known as the Organization of Afro-American Unity. Despite threats on his life, he continued to preach this “new religion” until his assassination in 1965. His views on the abolition of slavery were that it was a good idea. He said “Whites can help us but can’t join us”.
After the Civil War whites reacted quickly. A group called the Ku Klux Klan was invented. It was formed because some whites still hated black people and wanted them dead. The KKK dress up in white to show they only like white people not black. They would have lynched black people. Segregation is when black people are separated from white people. The segregation laws were known as “Jim Crow” laws because Jim Crow was a character in a song that was made to make fun of black people. White people in the south were keen to have segregation because black people will still be classed as 2nd class. Black people felt powerless when segregation laws were introduced.
Black people faced racism through economics by being paid a lot less than white people in their work. White people had the chance to vote but black people didn’t. This was because to vote you had to pass a literacy test in which the black people were no good at. People’s attitudes towards black people were not very nice. They hated the blacks just because of their skin colour.
After going through these factors I have finally decided whether the abolition of slavery improved life for black people or not. I think that life has improved for black people after the abolition of slavery but not as much as it should have. After slavery was over black people became free and could live a pain free life, but also the KKK was invented and black people were hated. Although blacks were free they weren’t treated completed equally, white people got paid much more than black people which was very unfair. The abolition of slavery improved life a lot for black people but I still think a bit more could have been done to make blacks and whites completely equal.
By Mita Shah 9K
