Racial discrimination has been an ongoing social problem facing America. Many individuals are being discriminated against based on their skin color, ethnic, or race. One may discriminate by refusing to cooperate with, do business with, socialize with, or even share resources with people of a particular group or race. Moreover, the government may also involve racial discrimination in a de facto fashion or law. For instance, the government may implement policies for racial segregation, desperate law enforcement, or even disproportionally allocate its resources favoring a particular race while neglecting the other. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the formation of institutions for blacks and whites after the civil war in America, in addition to discussing the main reasons the African Americans had voting rights but not the right to own land.
Formation Of Separate Institutions
In the previous Confederation, most states adopted the Black Codes, a law modeled on the former slave laws, immediately after the civil war and after adopting the “13th Amendment.” The laws’ intention was limiting the newly acquired freedom of liberated black Americans by putting restrictions on their freedom to move and forcing them to participate in the forced labor (Social Welfare Library, 2020). The “Black Codes” was the starting point of the laws' custom and system that supports a white supremacy system called "Jim Crow." Most of the States and the local communities passed the "Jim Crow" law mandating equal but separate African American status.
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The statutes and ordinances, which were the then “Jim Crow Laws,” were enacted in 1874 to 1975 to separate the whites and the blacks in America. Theoretically, it was for the creation of separate but equal treatment of the two races. Practically, the laws condemned blacks for inferior treatment and facilities. As a result, there was segregation of education and other public facilities, including churches, hospitals, hotels, and restaurants (Marable, 2016). “Jim Crow Laws” realistically led to offering accommodations and treatments that were mostly inferior to those offered for their white American counterparts. Most importantly, the law required public facilities and resources to have separate facilities for whites and blacks in America, leading to separate institutions.
Treasons For The Right To Vote
The 14th constitutional Amendment in 1868 gave African Americans the right to citizenship after the civil war freed the enslaved Americans. However, this right did not translate to voting rights. The blacks were not allowed to vote. As a result, Congress passed the 15th Amendment, saying that all American citizens' voting rights shall not be denied due to skin color or race. However, various states still circumvented the constitution. In 1965, the “Voting Rights Act” gave direction to the attorney general to enforce black Americans' voting rights (The Library of Congress, 2020). That voting rights Act created an essential change in the black American status within the South of the country. The act then prohibited the various states from denying other Americans their voting rights by using literacy tests and other techniques to exclude black Americans from voting. By 1961, 61% of black Americans had registered as voters.
However, the right to land ownership was still denied to black Americans even if they had been given the right to vote. After Abraham Lincoln offered the Blacks free land due to lack of settlement after their freedom from slavery, their land was given back to Confederation planter who previously owned it. The standard-issue that denied them the right to land ownership was their lack of necessary paperwork and documents. Their inability to produce these items resulted in their inability to access programs and services that would help them own land and ensure their land remains with the family. They lacked birth certificates, which was necessary to prove their identity.
References
Marable, M. (2016). Beyond black and white (2nd ed.). Verso Books.
Social Welfare Library. (2020). Jim Crow Laws and Racial Segregation . Social Welfare History Project. Retrieved 17 November 2020, from https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/eras/civil-war-reconstruction/jim-crow-laws-andracial-segregation/#:~:text=Jim%20Crow%20Laws%20were%20statutes,to%20inferior%20treatment%20and%20facilities .
The Library of Congress. (2020). Voting Rights for African Americans | The Right to Vote | Elections | Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress . The Library of Congress. Retrieved 17 November 2020, from https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/elections/right-to-vote/voting-rights-for-african-americans/ .
