During our previous socratic seminar, we learned about the Reconstruction period and how that had impacted the overall America's fundamental believe over equality and freedom. Especially diving into the signifiant issue of White Supremacy in the South, the majorities of black's struggle for freedom rose from these former pro-slavery states. Despite the government passing down the 15th, 16th the Southern states still managed to find a loophole. I find it intriguing and what is the extend a faith or fixed mindset can lead drive people to the extremes. In this case, for many in the South most people thought it was almost a violation of their rights to have free black Americans within their states. Almost backed by nothing, yet supported many because it solely benefited their positions in the social hierarchy.
Due to this belief that spread around in the white supremacists South like wildfire, many began believing that despite the blacks were now free and capable of owning their own land, they would try to do everything to prevent them from any sort of power. Materialistic things couldn't of been in the hands of the blacks, any sort of political power within the congress or supreme court was seen to revolt against as well. Overall, it puzzled me that was it the fear of loosing a stance in the social hierarchy or was it a sense of pride on coming in to terms that the Southerners now had to accept the blacks as regular citizens?
My input on this is that to figure this out we also need to look into human psychology. People often wonder how someone can brutally beat another to death and not feel regret at all. We wonder similar things about the Holocaust, how normal people could suddenly turn and kill another one of their species. Supremacy today began from the roots of slavery and oppression, slavery and oppression began from a need for human labor. People needed an excuse to be able to treat other human beings like they did, so people began to spread the idea that "colored" people aren't worth as much as a "white" person. Their faulty reasoning justified their treatment of African people. Then, having it be that way for decades, cause people to believe it is simply the truth, and it is their "right" to have slaves, causing racism and supremacy.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your assertions about the impact of deeply rooted racial feelings of most white southerners on the treatment and therefore rights of African Americans post Civil War, but I also find it interesting that during the short period of time after the War and during Reconstruction, blacks in the South saw more freedoms than they ever had in the past and they would have for the next hundred years. For example in the early 1880’s, there was a huge increase in the number of african americans in senate and house, but from 1887 to 1957 not a single member in senate was african american. One could speculate about the government’s impact at this time and if it could have increased resentment or this period just allowed African Americans to assert their new freedoms. **
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