lesson 3

• What political rights did African-Americans gain after emancipation

  Over 700,000 black men were able to vote giving them a significant role in electing representatives

  Organisations like the union league was set up to encourage black participation in politics

  by 1868 black people were represented in political positions such as Congress and state legislatures

  however the influence with often undermined by white Republicans who question their motives and most black representatives were not elected in proportion of the population
• Did African-Americans gain civil rights in the north after emancipation

  Progress was limited only 5% of black people lived outside the south after 1865 they fight for equal rights and opportunities in the north remained largely theoretical

  a few African-Americans like Blanche Kay Bruce managed to achieve political roles but overall representation was minimal and they face significant barriers to further advancement
• To what extent did African-American select land after emancipation

  African-Americans were really granted land as president Johnson return confiscated lines to former white owners

  sharecropping became the primary way for African-Americans to earn a living

  sharecropping trapped African-Americans in cycles of death as land owners required high rents and farmers often had to buy goods on credit
• Why are black people still oppressed after emancipation

  The economic and legal system to ensure that black Americans remain at the bottom of the economic hierarchy

  sharecropping heavily favoured white landowners leaving black families in poverty

  African-Americans faced legal inequalities and white southerners actively work to ensure they would not rise economically
• African-Americans quality of life improve after emancipation

  Educational opportunities increased but many African-Americans remain trapped inside cause of poverty

  employment opportunities for African Americans were limited as white employers field competition and Racial proximity

  black people are disproportionately represented in the poorest sections of southern society facing systematic racism and economic exploitation
• What additional challenges did African-Americans face in the South post-emancipation

  Southerns white claimed that black workers were lazy and used supervised labour systems to exploite them further

  many white Southerners had resentment towards black people viewing them as inferior

  African-American struggle to escape and life of economic dependence and faced widespread hostility