3) Immigrants stayed together in the cities to escape racial violence, economic hardship, and political oppression.
Part B:
Political Machine: An organized group that controlled the activities of political party in a city.
Grafts: The illegal use of political influence for personal gain.
Boss Tweed: William M. Tweed was New York City’s powerful democratic political machine.
Patronage: The giving of government jobs to people who had helped a candidate get elected.
Civil Service: Government Administration.
Pendleton Civil Service Act: In 1883, it was an act that authorized a bipartisan civil service commission to make appointments to federal jobs through merit system based on candidate’s performance on an examination.
I believe that political bosses were bad for society because they create a higher social hierarchy for people to trust and place their hope in. Creating a sense of equality is always preferred due to the fact that a sense of is more reliable than being called a “Boss”.
The reconstruction was a period of time following the civil war, which attempted to resolve many issues that emerged after the war, including setting forth a set of basic rights for freed slaves, and the reunification of the North and the South. Though it did succeed in these goals, the reconstruction failed socially and economically, making it only a political step in the right direction rather than the total reconstruction of the United States. From 1865-1877, the time of the reconstruction, many issues arose between the whites and blacks. The amendments created during the reconstruction to show a sense of equality amongst blacks and whites eventually led to the creation of extremist groups that promoted white supremacy, such as the KKK. Though the reconstruction did in fact pass amendments 13-15, which formally freed the slaves and provided basic rights for free African Americans, it may have created more issues for freed slaves if one were to consider the social ramifications of the political change. The reconstruction resolved issues from a very general perspective, rather than resolve each issue individually and create amendments specific to the problem. Some of the major issues addressed were partially resolved (such as the voting rights of slaves), while other remained untouched. The overall outcome of the Reconstruction can be considered both a failure and a success.
Due to the poor African American representation and the horrible living conditions of former slaves, the life black people were full of hardships. To address this issue, the government made some major political changes, including changes in the constitution. For the first time in the history of America, slavery was to be abolished, and with it came the rights of freed African American slaves. The most prominent successes of the reconstruction were the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment, each of which contributed to the rights of African Americans/Slaves. The 13th amendment abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, which in itself, is a major success for America as a whole. Though this occurred prior to the Reconstruction, the 13th amendment was vital to the reconstruction politically and socially, for it was the core amendment that created blacks as semi-equal. . The 14th amendment to the United States, which was ratified on July 9, 1868, is considered to many to be the biggest structural change in American government since the Constitution was created. The amendment provides an extensive definition of United States citizenship, overturning the Dred Scott case, which excluded African Americans. It required states to provide equal protection under the law to all people, regardless of race, and was used in the mid-20th century to dismantle legal segregation. The 15th amendment declared the right to vote for all, and one cannot stop another from voting based on race or color. Along with the amendments created, African Americans gained some political power by electing African American representatives. Congress also passed laws that helped improve the lives of former slaves by enforcing some form of equality, and schools were created to encourage higher education for them. They believed that it was time for a new era.
Yet as these political changes rapidly swept the nation, many white people, specifically in the south, felt outraged that African Americans were free and were being given more rights as time elapsed. As the political rights of African Americans and slaves rose, their level in the social hierarchy of the south sunk further than the bottom. Racial aggressions rose quickly and extremist groups, such as the KluKlux Klan, rose with the sole intention to rob African Americans of their rights and to promote white supremacy. The KluKlux clan grew and soon after the death of Abraham Lincoln in, the Congress, controlled by the republicans, differed with President Johnson as to the status of freed slaves. Initially, the Klan’s motive was to prevent blacks from voting (which led to the creation of the 15th amendment). This was their priority in the south because the amount of black freed slaves in the south was substantial. Yet, as time passed, their goals went from stopping blacks from voting to end all forms of basic activity, such as going out in public grounds or restaurants or markets etc. The level that blacks stood in the social hierarchy created by the south worsened. To many, they blacks were considered inhumane. Blacks were shunned from the southern society and many issues arose from a social perspective.
The final yet equally important perspective to evaluate these failures and successes is from an economic point of view. The biggest failure is that the reconstruction failed to revive or transform the southern economy in the slightest. It may have even worsened the economic epidemic at hand. The price of cotton fell by half. Thousands if not millions of workers (black and white) lost their jobs. Many small landowners, local merchants and cotton factors (wholesalers) went bankrupt. Many carpetbaggers returned to the North or joined the Redeemers. And now living amongst the population were almost four million former slaves, who were highly uneducated. The south was virtually nonexistent economically. Thaddeus Stevens, a republican leader and one of the most powerful men in the House of Representatives, fought for slave rights. His main concern was the economic opportunity for slaves. Yet with the circumstances given, jobs were impossible to find, regardless of race. With the constant failing railroad schemes and the enormous cost of the Confederate war, a high toll was taken on the South's economic infrastructure. The economy was in a depression.
The reconstruction, though it did not resolve the political, economic, and social failures thrown upon the North and the South, it does not directly correlate with the outcome shown in history. The Reconstruction is perceived as a time of fixation that failed, when in reality, it put America in the right direction. The basic set of values and amendments pushed forth during this reconstructive era though they it may seem descent from a third person perspective, it could not suffice at the time. The reconstruction, though it failed to transform the southern economy and end racial segregation, was a step in the right direction. The laws enforced were not to blame, rather the people. The social stances that had been built on white supremacy resulted in the slowing of racial equality and the failure of the reconstruction.