Civil Rights And Society: Black Codes

Black codes

a series of statutes and laws enacted in 1865 and 1866 by the legislatures of the Southern states following the end of the Civil War at the beginning of the Reconstruction Era. Public laws that economized restricted minorities' civil rights

the freedom of black people (freedmen) and the right to own property, conduct business, buy and lease land, and move freely through public spaces such as Southern towns.

Regain control over the freed slaves Inhibit the freedom of freed slaves Prevent black uprisings Ensure the continued supply of cheap labor Maintain segregation Maintain white supremacy

poll taxes, property qualifications, and literacy tests,

White Primary Poll Tax Literacy Tests grandfather clause Property Ownership required to vote

the practice of keeping blacks from voting in the southern states' primaries through arbitrary use of registration requirements and intimidation

vagrancy law; had to prove they had a job and that job was recognized by whites

1870 Georgia

1889

A test given to persons to prove they can read and write before being allowed to register to vote

A clause in registration laws allowing people who do not meet registration requirements to vote if they or their ancestors had voted before 1867.

-fee that people had to pay in order to vote -a way that the Southerners got around the 15th amendment

penalties and punishments including Convict Leasing that put freed slaves back into forced labor on the plantations.

white law makers in the South in the legislatures of the states of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, and North Carolina.

in Mississippi on November 22, 1865, following the end of the Civil War (April 12, 1861 - May 10, 1865) during the Reconstruction Era.

Labor Contracts Vagrancy Laws Crimes and Punishments Apprenticeships Civil Rights Courts

a legal document for black "servants" who agreed to work for white "masters". Terms and conditions of employment were fully documented and signed by a judge. These included strict conducts of behavior and required permission before an ex-slave could leave the premises

ex-slaves to sign labor contracts

arrest people merely on the suspicion they were about to do something illegal

although fit to work, was without visible means of support or a permanent home and traveled from from place to place without working.

freedmen and whites. Punishments included chain gangs and convict leasing

vagrants, or orphans, even against their will, to an employer until the age of 21 for males and 18 for females

restricted in the Black Codes and unequal to the Civil Rights of whites

Racially segregated courts were established for black only cases

1. Congress refused to seat the Southern representatives 2. Congress overrode President Johnson and passed the Civil Rights Act of 1866 3. A Joint Committee on Reconstruction was established to investigate the situation in the South and reported that the Southern states were in a state of civil disorder, and had therefore not held valid elections. 4. The Fourteenth Amendment was passed by Congress 5. A follow-up Freedmen's Bureau Bill was passed by Congress giving additional rights to ex-slaves 6. Reconstruction Acts were passed over President Johnson's veto "...to provide for the more efficient government of the Rebel States"