Professor’s note: 800 to 1,000 word essay using the sources below and the sources from “Racism I” to answer the question: Was Reconstruction a success or failure? As for the grading of this essay, it does not matter which you choose. I want to know that you understand Reconstruction, both positive and negative and its affects since the 1870s.
The first essay is about Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), written by Brian Duignan and published by Britannica. This short essay explains that Plessy was an extension of the Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) decision and would be overturned by the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Kansas (1954) decision. The decision hinged on two of the Reconstruction Amendments (see how history lines up sometimes?). Note that Supreme Court decisions are written in italics. Italicize them in your essays as well. Cite this source as (Duignan). https://www.britannica.com/event/Plessy-v-Ferguson…
Brown v. Board of Education (1954) is summarized in the following essay published by Oyez. Cite this as (Oyez). https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/347us483 (Links to an external site.)
“President Johnson and the Civil Rights Act of 1964” by John Fitz is a short documentary of the events leading to the civil rights act and the end of legal segregation in America. The documentary is informative and the drama leading to the passage of the bill is gripping. However, the conclusion of the drama is both humorous and salacious, but sometimes that is the way work gets done in Washington. Cite this video as (Fitz). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7lrS0sLrVE
Apparently the Civil Rights Act was not enough to get staunch segregationists to give up their power. Since voting rights have largely been a states rights issue, most southern states continued to deny non-whites the right to vote and because of civil action, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was passed by congress and signed by the president. Watch “Bridging History: The Voting Rights Act of 1965” by US House History. Cite this video as (House). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URMb2D3kFZQ
Finally, as far as new federal laws go, the element of housing is addressed by the federal government. In post-World War II America, whites were able to get loans for homes pretty easily, but blacks and other non-whites were largely shut out of the process. Again, congress stepped in with the Fair Housing Act of 1968. NPR produced the video, “Housing Segregation and Redlining in America” to explain why it is important. I apologize for the language in the opening story. Cite this video as (NPR).
Some accounts give the number of riots in America at over 700 during the period from 1965 to 1971. Some caused little damage, but many resulted in death and massive destruction. The Detroit Riots of 1967 were the worst. Despite the fact that blacks were given more legal rights there were whites who still treated blacks as second-class citizens. According to a federal commission’s research, “Our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white—separate and unequal.” After marching for equal rights and getting them–on paper, many blacks did not get them in reality. The following film recounts the Detroit Riots fifty years hence in “Detroit 1967: When a City went up in Flames” by CBS Sunday Morning. Cite this video as (CBS).
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