Chapter 15 Reflection

Before studying this unit, I already knew about the long term affects of segregation in the South and the      harsh ways in which the government acted against the South. I knew that even though slavery had ended with the 13th Amendment, blacks were still treated with disrespect and given a lower status. I also knew that after Lincoln was assassinated the government took a different approach in punishing the South by enforcing new laws and implementing troops throughout the southern states. Something I learned that really stood out to me was the Freedman's bureau. I had never heard of this program before, and thought it was amazing that the government had set up such a helpful organization. It helped former slaves obtain land, jobs, and anything else essential to them. This really stood out to me because I never had thought that such an organization existed. And the fact that it proved blacks with such things surprised me in many ways.

One thing I knew before but understand better now, was the segregation imposed by the government. Before learning about this, I did not know it had started so early, or that it became a federal law. Segregation started in the late 1800s, while i had thought it did not beginning until the early 1900s. And it continued for close to 100 years in the United States. Also, I had always believed they were just choses made by southerners, and not that the federal government actually enforced these laws. It is important for people to know the history of where they live because it gives them a better understanding of the town and why it is the way it is. If there are certain statues or customs of a certain place, learning the history lets them know how these came to be and why they are associated with their town.