African Americans and the Gilded Age Flashcards
What constitutional amendments promised civil and political equality to African Americans during the Gilded Age?
- The Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery
- The Fourteenth Amendment, which gave all citizens equal protection under the law
- The Fifteenth Amendment, which prohibited discrimination on the basis of race
How did the 1867 and 1868 Reconstruction Amendments help African Americans?
- They established federal control over the southern states, preventing them from carrying out their racist agenda
- This allowed many African Americans to vote before the compromise of 1877
What did the 1875 Civil Rights Act attempt to guarantee, and what happened to it?
- It aimed to guarantee equal rights in theatres and other public places but was never enforced as the Supreme Court ruled it was not within federal jurisdiction in 1883 in the United States v. Harris case
- This Supreme Court ruling was a clear endorsement of segregation
How did African Americans’ new-found freedom to move aid the advancement of their civil rights?
- It afforded them the ability to find new economic opportunities
- The black population increased from 4.4 million in 1870 to 7.9 million in 1900, and while most stayed in the south, they were able to move to find employment
What was the impact of the Slaughterhouse Cases (1873) on civil rights?
The Supreme Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment only protected national, not state, citizenship rights, weakening protections for African Americans within individual states
What did the 1875 US v. Cruikshank case determine?
That the federal government did not have the authority to punish violations of civil rights by individuals, only by state governments, leaving African Americans vulnerable to discrimination
Together with the Slaughterhouse Case, this made it difficult for African Americans to find legal recourse
How many African Americans were elected to Congress after black voting in 1869, and when did the last one leave?
Twenty were elected, but the last black Congressman left in 1901
Who were the two African American US Senators elected after black enfranchisement in 1869?
Hiram Revels and Blanche Bruce, both from Mississippi
How did the Compromise of 1877 affect African American civil rights?
- It ended federal military intervention in the South, effectively abandoning Reconstruction and allowing white supremacist governments to regain power
- This was after southern states had ratified the Reconstruction Amendments and support for radical Republicans had waned amid a shifting focus to economic expansion
How were many African Americans trapped in a cycle of poverty in the Gilded Age?
- While many slaves were allowed to lease land by the 1866 Homestead Act, many were forced to engage in sharecropping, an arrangement where a tenant gives a portion of crops to their land-owner as rent
- This prevented many blacks from making enough money to purchase their own land and become economically independent
What mechanisms were used to disenfranchise black voters after the Fifteenth Amendment?
Understanding clauses (how well do you understand the system), literacy tests, poll taxes, and the grandfather clause (your grandfather must have been eligible to vote for you to vote)
What was the result of voting restrictions in Louisiana between 1896 and 1900?
The number of black registered voters dropped from 130,000 to just 5,300
What role did the Freedmen’s Bureau play in African American education?
- Established in 1865 by the federal government, it supported the creation of schools for African Americans and reduced illiteracy from 95% in 1865 to 64% by the 1890s
- It also provided shelter, food and medical aid to former slaves
Name two historically black universities established during Reconstruction.
Howard University and Fisk University
How did black educational enrollment change in the Gilded Age?
- It doubled between 1877 and 1887
- However, even by 1887, only two-fifths of black children were enrolled
- This was a result of a lack of government funding, owing party to fears of an educated black population
What role did the church play in African American communities during the Gilded Age?
- It served as a religious, educational, political, and social hub, offering leadership training and community support
- They were the most organised black institutions before World War Two, incubating leaders like Peter Williams and Lott Cary
What percentage of black farmers owned land by 1910?
20%, which was higher than it was previously
What did the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court case decide?
It upheld the doctrine of ‘separate but equal’, legalising segregation
Why did the 1875 Enforcement Bill fail?
- Declining support for radical republicans and the cause of civil rights
- It showed that, even before the Compromise of 1877, white power was become re-entrenched in the south
What view did historian Peter Kolchin reject regarding the mentality of former slaves?
He rejected the idea that slavery had left blacks mentally submissive, noting that freed African Americans quickly formed churches, became politically active, and pursued education
What was the Greenback Party and how did it relate to African American voters?
- The Greenback Party was a farmers’ party that challenged the wealthy hegemony
- Southern Democrats temporarily supported the desires of black voters to weak the electoral prospects of these Independents, advocating for their enfranchisement and representation
- However, they changed course following the formal creation of the Populist Party
What caused Southern Democrats to reverse their position on black suffrage after 1892?
- The rise of the Populist Party, which attempted to unite poor black and white farmers, led Democrats to intensify their commitment to white supremacy to prevent such alliances
- This led to the reimposition of discriminatory measures in the south
What kind of education did Tuskegee Institute offer?
Vocational and industrial training for African Americans; it produced a generation of black craftsmen and businesspeople
What was the National Negro Business League and who founded it?
Founded by Booker T. Washington in 1900, it promoted African American economic advancement and entrepreneurship
