Essay: Social, economic, political and leader words discussion

Social words:
KKK-  The KKK also known as the Ku Klux Klan was a organization of white people, who wanted to maintain white supremacy in the south. They went around murdering, hurting, and kidnapping African Americans to reach their goal. They had a negative effect for the African Americans, but the whites thought they were being heroes and helping people. They would attack them in public place, and especially wanted to prevent them from voting. To prevent them from voting they would attack them when they were going to vote, which would scare them away from voting, leaving them with very little rights. There were many people involved in the KKK, even kids. They gained more and more power over time, and more people joined thinking it was a good thing. The Ku Klux Klan committed many crimes, including murder, but were never charged or punished for any of them. They thought African Americans were inferior to them, and that they were like second class. When the members of the Ku Klux Klan went to attack the African Americans they wore white sheets over their faces, and the leaders wore red. They attacked them in their neighborhoods, and burned their houses, churches, and schools. The KKK ended up killing thousands of innocent people, and has continued on for a very long time.
Black codes- Black codes were laws passed in the southern states to limit African American rights, and for the whites to unfairly continue white dominance. Some black codes made it illegal to marry another African American people, and to not be able to get a job at certain places. Some laws even tried to make African Americans work for their former owners, which some ended up doing so they would make money and have a place to stay. These black codes limited the freedom of these African Americans. They were told they would have freedom after the civil war, but they were still being treated unfairly and lacked freedom. Since the south passed these black codes the north created the plan for Radical reconstruction, this included passing the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments. The north even sent federal troops to the south, but they would later be taken out. The black codes ended from 1866 to 1877, but the south made more ways to limit African American rights, including the Jim Crow laws. The black codes had a negative effect on African Americans because the codes limited their freedom, which they were promised after the civil war.
Lynching- Lynching was when a mob of people, usually people who were involved with the Ku Klux Klan, attacked African Americans, murdering, whipping, and abusing them as “punishments”. Lynching ended up scaring many African Americans from leaving their houses and going to vote because many white people didn’t agree with African American political rights. Lynchings would happen anywhere, in African American neighborhoods, public places, practically anywhere. They would hang and murder many innocent people, because they didn’t believe they should have rights. Many white southern people were involved with this, and they would hang African Americans in the middle of the street. This had a negative effect on African Americans because they would kill them whether they were kids, or adults. Nobody tried to stop them and there were never any laws against lynching.
Economic words:
South in debt- After the civil war the south was in a lot of debt. Houses, businesses, and farms had been burned during the war, leaving people without homes, and jobs. These places had also been looted by troops, and other people. The south had lost its resources, and greatest source of income. Not only that, but during the war the confederate had been printing their own money, so most of what people had earned and saved up was worthless after the war. The confederacy had also issued bonds to raise money during the war, the people who had bought those bonds had lost their investments also. Along with that newly freed African Americans had no land, little money, and few possessions to start their new life. They would also have trouble getting jobs because they had little or no education, and most of them couldn’t even read or write. Most of the African Americans would find themselves in the system of sharecropping which would also leave them in debt. The south being in debt had a negative effect on the southerners because they would have to start their lives over again, and get new land, jobs, and resources.
Sharecropping- Sharecropping was an economic system of tenant farming. In this system individuals or even a family pay to rent out a part of farming land and live with the person who owns the land. The person hosting the sharecropper will provide them with materials for farming like seeds and shovels, and give the sharecropper food and a home. In return for this the sharecropper pays back the farmer by selling the crops they grow to make money, and give the host some of their crops and money to pay him back. A lot of times a sharecropper’s crops might not sell well, or they might not make enough to pay back the host. If the host asks for to much money then the sharecropper might need to stay longer  to pay back the farmer, which leads to the sharecropper being in debt. Some sharecroppers were white, but this system was mostly made for newly freed African Americans to make money, but this had a negative effect on many people, because it left them in debt. Sharecroppers who were in debt were unable to get work anywhere else until paying the farmer back.
Poll taxes- Poll Taxes were a required payment if you wanted to vote after the civil war. African Americans gained their voting rights from the fifteenth amendment, which was one of the reconstruction amendments, but most people didn’t believe that they should have the right to vote. Southern legislature passed these poll taxes so most African Americans couldn’t vote. This also taxed white people but since African Americans had to find jobs, which they didn’t have before the civil war, they didn’t have the money to pay for the poll tax. These laws also made all people who wanted to vote take a literacy test, because most African Americans didn’t have an education, and most couldn’t even read or write, most of the African Americans didn’t pass their literacy test, which took away their right to vote. This had a negative effect on African Americans because it created obstacles to keep them from their voting rights which were stated in the fifteenth amendment.
Political words:
Reconstruction amendments (13th, 14th, and 15th amendments)- The reconstruction Amendments were the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments.  The thirteenth amendment abolished slavery in the nation. Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation two years before the thirteenth amendment. The Proclamation abolished slavery in the confederate states. This was used as a tactic to weaken the confederate states. Lincoln had the right to abolish slavery in those states with a Proclamation, but not to the states who were a part of union, which is why an amendment was needed. The fourteenth amendment granted citizenship and legal rights to the African Americans. This gave African Americans equal protection under the law. This amendment also stopped the rule that an African American three-fifths of a person in the population, they were now considered a hole person in the population. The main goal of the fourteenth amendment was to protect the civil rights of African Americans, however, the south found a loophole and passed the black codes which limited these rights that the African Americans were granted. The fifteenth Amendment gave African Americans the right to vote. The south passed poll taxes, which was an attempt to take away this right. Poll taxes made it so that people who wanted to vote had to pay a fee. Most African Americans couldn’t afford to do this because most didn’t have jobs. They also created literacy test that voters had to pass to be able to vote. Most African Americans couldn’t pass this because they didn’t have an education, and couldn’t read or write. These Amendments had a positive effect for African Americans because they gave them rights that they didn’t have before, and was the start of reconstruction.
Segregation- Segregation means forced separation usually between races. After the civil war there was a lot of segregation between the African Americans and white people in the southern states, because many people were very racist against the African Americans. Segregation split up schools, churches, and public facilities like hotels, restaurants, bathrooms, and even public transportation so there would be different ones for each race. The Supreme Court said it was legal to have segregation, as long as both sides were equal. For example, schools would have to have the same type of education for segregation to be legal, however, it didn’t but no one got in trouble for that. Segregation had a negative effect because African Americans would have worse versions of what the whites had, like schools wouldn’t be as good, and many things were unfair. Segregation caused inequality with what the different races had and was very unfair to African Americans.
Jim Crow laws- African Americans had gained rights through the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments. After the civil war the south tried to take away these rights and segregate the races. Schools, churches, public places like restaurants and bathrooms, and public transportation had been legally segregated. The laws that allowed this were called Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow was a fictional character in a minstrel show who painted himself black to show his ideas about African Americans. The Supreme Court said that this segregation was legal as long as the separation was equal. However, the African Americans facilities were inferior to what the whites had, but they didn’t get in trouble. These Jim Crow laws had a negative effect on the country because it was the beginning of separation in the United States.
Leader words:
Lincoln- Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States of America. He was elected president in 1860, but after he was elected president 11 States seceded from the union, and then the civil war began. Lincoln ran the country during the civil war, and his goal as the president was to restore the union and to end slavery. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which ended slavery in the confederate area, and he also supported the thirteenth amendment which freed all slaves in the nation. Lincoln is well known for his Gettysburg Address speech, where he dedicated a cemetery for the fallen soldiers at a battle site. During the speech Lincoln talked about self government, and the founding of the United States. The civil war ended and the north won, but sadly Lincoln was assassinated at Ford’s theater, five days after the end of the civil war. Lincoln had a positive effect on the United States because he was the man who started the end of slavery, and reconstruction in the United States.
Grant- Ulysses S. Grant went to a military academy when he was seventeen years old, which no intent on joining the army. However, he joined the army and fought in the Mexican American war. After the war ended he resigned from the army but couldn’t keep a job. When the civil war broke out he returned to the army with his natural leadership skills,which would later help him move up in the military. As the civil war continued Grant was given command of the union troops in Galena, Illinois. He began to get tired of leading his troops, so he asked if he could begin an offensive campaign. He was successful in the western campaign, where he had many victories and gained control of the Mississippi river. In March 1864 Lincoln put grant in charge of the entire union army. The north won the war, and a year after the war president Andrew Johnson appointed grant as the General of the armies of the United States of America. Grant had a positive impact on his country, because he helped the north win the civil war, which led to reconstruction in the United States, and the end of slavery.
Hayes- Rutherford B. Hayes was the 19th president of the United States. Before becoming president Hayes was a lawyer. He ran against Samuel Tilden in the election, and at that time there were troops stationed in the south due to reconstruction. The election was to close to call because three southern states sent in two ballets. So, congress came up with a compromise to resolve the conflict. Hayes would be elected president, but they would have to remove troops their from the southern states, and end reconstruction. They agreed to this compromise and Hayes became president. Hayes ended reconstruction in the south, which led to the loss of most African American rights. Hayes was criticized for agreeing to this compromise because of the end of reconstruction. He decided not to run again after his term was up. Hayes had a negative effect on the country because he ended reconstruction, and African Americans lost most of the rights they gained from the reconstruction amendments.