Concerns During The Reconstruction Era

The Reconstruction period has been one of the most challenging and controversial periods of the United States history, which led to substantial changes in social, economical, and political aspects of life of the US citizens. It has influenced every stratum of society, but African Americans were the group that was affected the most.
There were many issues and concerns that African Americans were facing after the Civil War. Under slavery, most blacks lived separated from their relatives, so being able to safely reunite with their family was one of their main needs. Being around family would provide them much needed autonomy and independence, which would lead to other wants of freed African Americans: becoming economically self-sufficient by
After the Reconstruction began, the white community of the South bonded together, creating different patriotic organizations (or at least that’s what they called those racist associations), and trying to deprive black people from their rights and restore the old order. Instituting vagrancy laws and strict punishments for petty theft, imposing harsh penalties for not completing sharecroppers contracts, and many other harsh policies were implemented upon African Americans. Southern Democratic Party was very powerful, especially after federal troops were withdrawn from the south by Rutherford Hayes, Republican, who was given the election by Democrats. It was that time, during 1880s, when African American leaders, white and black farmers and sharecroppers, and Euro-American Populists were joining Republican Party even more actively, uprising against the Southern Democratic Party which was only presenting interests of white elite. However, that alliance between white and black republicans and populists wasn’t successfull. By using race hatred, election fraud, and terrorist actions, the Democrats defeated them, which led to a complete triumph of white conservatism in the South. The Ku Klux Klan, the terrorist arm of the Southern Democratic Party, was very active at those
Booker T Washington’s long term objective was to end disfranchisement, however in his famous Atlanta Address he encouraged African Americans to accommodate to social segregation and accept disfranchisement for the time being. He also urged them to stay in the South, and called for black progress through education and entrepreneurship. Ida B. Wells, however, believed that it was better for African Americans to either go up North, or boycott segregated facilities, and tried to convince them that they shall not accept segregation and disfranchisement. Unlike Booker T Washington, who was born in slavery, Ida B Wells grew up under Reconstruction, when African Americans had way more freedom and opportunities that they used to. Wells was fighting really hard against lynching, and, struggling for justice, she started a campaign among black and white womens clubs of the North. Even though Booker T Washington and Ida B Wells had completely different views on issues, and Wells was an ardent opponent of Washington’s “accommodationist” approach, both of them only wished the best for their people, they, and succeeded in their