History Essay Sample: Living Postbellum America

Postbellum America refers to the period of reconstruction after a spell of war that affected most parts of the country. It would be remembered that the US was hit by a racial-based type of war that split the society into two main groups. The African Americans and the whites shared an antagonistic relationship with the whites claiming a higher rank within the society. The bias of distributing resources and opportunities favored more whites than the African-Americans and other immigrants. Wilson narrates the story of reconstruction in Historians and Textbooks. The author presents how the black people were turned to slaves by self-imposed masters from the North. The new masters came with plenty of promises to the blacks only to be realized that the change was superficial. The trust of the blacks was easily earned but the reality dawned after officers, and influential positions were held by the new masters. From this particular point of view, it can be established that living in the postbellum period was characterized by the renewal of challenges for the black people and the Mulattos.

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One important development in the reconstruction period was evident in the wake of the Mississippi black codes of 1865. The Mississippi Black Codes were a legislative piece aimed at conferring civil rights for the freed people. The intervention of the law meant that all people in the US were entitled to rights and opportunities. Section one of the codes indicates that freed individuals were entitled to all legal rights such as those of suing or being sued in a court of law. Freedmen were granted the freedom and legal authority to own property and possess property rights similar to that of the whites. The rights did not only focus on economic issues but also social issues such as marriage. The black people and the Mulattos were allowed to participate in legal proceedings as witnesses. Previously, the minorities were insignificant in legal preceding especially that which involved a white.

Most parts of the new law can be considered as bias given the fact that they never provided equal rights and opportunities for all Americans. Under the new law, freed black people and Mulattos were forbidden to intermarry with anyone within the society including the whites. Such a move was considered a crime because the law was dispensable on the grounds of racism. Anyone found guilty was to face a punishment that included a lifetime jail sentence.

To mark the height of renewed slavery, the black people and Mulattos were required to serve as legal employees under strict conditions. For instance, whenever a black person or a Mulatto voluntarily quits service, he or she was to be captured and returned to the employer. Technically, this was a revised version of slavery in the reconstruction period in America. The term freedom was only meant to end the use of the word slavery and not the end of oppression.

Accounts of various writers have proven that the whites still had the upper hand in the postbellum period. According to Wells-Barnett, refers to African Americans as the Biblical Samson who constantly faces instances of betrayal from the whites who have been labeled as Delilahs. The author presents the depth of corruption within the society. The levels of impunity targeting Afro-Americans has been considered as a great sin and inhuman. The author attempts to bring out the idea that the Afro-Americans are equally human. Africans who lived in postbellum America witnessed their brother come into contact with injustice very often. Taking part in writing such painful accounts of institutional injustices says a lot about the postbellum era. The book proves that there was minimal positive social reconstruction in the US.

According to a statement in Senator George Hoar Declares Chinese Exclusion Un-American, it has been stated that racism was a plague during the reconstruction era. The race has been identified as the last human delusion that was widespread and most challenging to overcome. The Negro communities, Irish communities, and the Indians have been the most targeted minorities in the US. The postbellum era was supposed to bring an end to slavery, but the results created a bigger social problem. Mr. Hayes developed ensured that the bill to exclude the Chinese laborers unanimously received ascend from the legislature. The move was inhuman and undiplomatic given the fact that it was meant to affect the international relation between the US and China.

The postbellum period marked the end of the slave trade but marked the beginning of a new social problem known as racism. Racism was used as the main weapon for facilitating segregation and unequal distribution of resources in the US. The Afro-Americans and the immigrants faced a greater challenge working as laborers for the whites under inhuman conditions. It was during the postbellum period that the minorities began to trust their potential to fight for a better place within the society.

Work Cited

BIBLIOGRAPHY "Senator George Hoar Declares Chinese Exclusion Un-American." Confronting Immigration Exclusion, 1860-1920. 1982.

Wells-Barnett, Ida. Southern Horrors: Lynch Laws in all its Phases. New York: Age Print, 1892.