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Black Codes
Black Codes were laws passed by the legislatures in the Southern states. The codes were used to aid in keeping the freed African Americans under control. It included restricting them from owning or renting farms and allowed officials to fine or possibly arrest African Americans who didn't have jobs. To the white employeres, this just made it easy for them to take advantage of the colored workers. Some officials were even enabled to arrest them if they didn't own a job. -
Civil Rights Act of 1886
Working against the black codes, the Radical Republicans pushed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 through Congress. Due to this, the federal government's power was able to get involved in state affairs to protect the rights of African Americans. In addition to that, it gave even granted citizenship to them. The act was supposed to counter the Supreme Court's decision. when the had ruled that African Americans weren't citizens. -
First Reconstuction Act
Due to the fact that ten of the Confederate states hadn't ratified the Fourteenth Amendment, Congress passed the First Reconstruction Act. It stated that those ten states had to form new governments. This law divided them into five militatry districts, until new state governments were formed. It also gave African American men the right to vote in state elections. The Second Reconstruction Act entitled the army ro register voters and to help organize state constitutional conventions. -
14th Amendment
This addition to the Constitution protected the African Americans' citizenships given to them by the Civil Rights Act of 1866. It promised that citizenship was not allowed to be taken away by passing another law. However, if a state refused an adult male citizen from voting, that state was liable to lose some representative in Congress. Since the Fourteenth Amendment was to protect African Americans, it became a requirement for the Sounthern states to ratify it before rejoining the Union. -
15th Amendment
The Fifteenth Amendment's purpose was to guarantee that both the state and federal governments were not allowed to deny any male citizen, due to "race, color, or previous condition of servitude," the right to vote. With this amendment, the Republicans' beliefs were that it allowed African Americans to vote and protect themselves better from the white people's unfair treatment.
