The civil war in America lasted between 1861 and 1865. The cause of the war was a conflict southern bound states, which were in support of slave trade, while their northern counterparts were in the opposition. Due to this, the southern states declared secession from the United States, to form the Confederate States of America. The northern states attacked the southern states and won the war (Acharya, Blackwell, & Sen, 2015). The African Americans were set free from the slavery after the war. However, it was difficult for them to rebuild their lives since some regulations were set in place by the southern states governments, to control it. Some of the actions that enhanced the effects of these limitations were seen through passing of Jim Crow Laws, the introduction of black codes and the new voting rules.
Only black males were allowed to vote after the civil war. As a way of denying them this right, whites in the South came up with literacy tests, poll taxes and grandfather clauses. The poll taxes demanded that every person pay a fee before they were allowed to vote. A considerable number of African Americans could not afford paying for the charges due to high poverty levels (Acharya, Blackwell, & Sen, 2015). During the slavery period, African Americans not only suffered low wages, but also malnutrition. Without economic self-sufficiency it was difficult for them to sustain themselves. The second requirement for one to qualify to vote was a literacy test. This test aimed to prove that one could read and write, a thing that most African Americans did not know. During the slavery period, they were denied the right to education. Thirdly, the grandfather clause was meant to exempt any person from the two requirements ( Acharya, Blackwell, & Sen, 2015 ) . The provision could only be applied by those who their fathers or grandfathers had taken part in voting, before the civil war. Additionally, this clause did not favor many blacks since most of their fathers and grandfathers still had no privilege to vote. The three requirements were set to deny most of the blacks this particular privilege, which they had newly acquired.
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Alongside the three factors mentioned earlier, the passing of the Jim Crow laws led to further victimization of African Americans through legalizing segregation. In exercising this law, whites ensured that there were separate drinking fountains, schools, sections in theaters, and sections on buses and trains, for them and the blacks ( Alvarez, 2017 ) . The segregation continued in both equal and unequal facilities. Additionally, the blacks were also intimidated and threatened as a way of discouraging them from challenging the Jim Crow laws. Blacks were subjected to low-quality facilities, as a way of showing inequality between the two groups.
Lastly, there were black codes, which entailed different rules set by various states to discriminate and limit the freedom of African Americans. Few employment choices and more strict labor contracts were some of the black codes that affected blacks’ economic lives. Other codes that limited them were such as being subjected to different and harsher laws compared to whites (Alvarez, 2017). They were also required to get permission to travel, and forced into apprenticeships if orphaned, which was against their will. More black codes were such as being denied a chance to vote or serve on juries and also own firearms. Breaking these laws attracted some punishments such as forced labor ( Acharya, Blackwell, & Sen, 2015 ) .
Conclusion
Although the blacks in the southern America gained their independence after the civil war, they were unable to rebuild their lives immediately. This delay was as a result of strategies set in place by the whites' state governments to intimidate them. Being denied the right to vote meant that they could not influence policy making. In turn, there was a little window of opportunity to change their living standards. These limitations made it difficult for them to achieve their goals.
References
Acharya, A., Blackwell, M., & Sen, M. (2015). A culture of disenfranchisement: How American slavery continues to affect to voting behavior. Pdf.
Alvarez, J. (2017). The legacy of slavery and the continued marginalization of communities of color within the legal system. CUNY Academic Works. Pdf.
