The Historical Progression of African Americans

The Historical Progression of African Americans
Jeannette Villatoro
GSN0839A
Dan French
October 24, 2008










The Historical Progression of African Americans

America is a powerful nation with a colorful history. Today it is a country in which people of all ethnicities and backgrounds can share in the common good. But there is a dark side to America’s past that has hindered the progression of a certain group of people: African Americans. Through intense struggles and oppression, African American people have suffered some of the worst injustices imaginable to mankind. But through perseverance and determination, African Americans have managed to succeed in a steady progression throughout history, leading to present day victories. As the nation changed for the better, many affluent aspects of African American life such as culture, politics, and social development helped to release the plague upon African Americans whilst eventually opening an avenue of successful reform.

Cultural Effects

Perhaps one of the most distinctive sufferance that African Americans endured was that of slavery. In the words of one former slave, Booker T. Washington, that later became famous for his remembrances and reflections of this troubling time in history, “My life had its beginning in the midst of the most miserable, desolate, and discouraging surroundings” (Washington, 2008, pg. 1).

African Americans had a horrid beginning in America, as they were stripped of all civilian rights and were given the sole purpose of being held as property; to produce work, to be used, abused, and discarded if considered no longer substantial in worth. No human rights were bestowed upon them, and they were prisoners of the will of the whites. Commonly they were made to be the center focus of all white families. They cleaned the home, cooked the meals, tended the fields, and nurtured the growing children while they were deprived of any ability to flourish in their own lives. They were denied the right to marry and have strong family bonds. The duress they faced was a form of violence against the entire race, and African Americans began to adopt the expected role in which society placed upon them in the face of their struggle to maintain their inner worth (Harding, 2007).

Despite the repressive efforts of the whites, African Americans did manage to stabilize their religious and cultural beliefs as a means to survival, however diminished. The influence of religion was no less hoisted upon the slaves of whites, yet African Americans rejected the notions of Catholicism and Protestant beliefs to adapt a new religion, and developed the “New World” (Harding, 2007, pg. 1). This religion was nurtured by an abundant sense of music and ritual dancing that incorporated the inflictions of the African Americans while keeping alive the culture and beauty of a once fluent people, subsequently providing hope for a miracle of change.

Another way of holding on to some remnant of identity through constant oppression was rebelling against the intentions of the whites. Although slaves learned early on to accept their role and do what was expected, oftentimes when bonding together they went against the rules and thrived to have their own piece of life. “Although marriage between black female and male slaves was generally prohibited by law, this did not prevent these slaves from performing their own secret rituals of commitment, love, and fidelity” (Franklin, 2007, pg. 43).

Seemingly, whites as an entity were entirely against any rights for slaves that would include such rituals as marriage, or educational benefits such as schooling, or even social activities. But as slavery sluggishly continued, many whites became adamant about letting

religion or education into the lives of their slaves. This is when the start of a revolutionary change began, for African Americans had no voice or strength without even a miniscule effort from whites on the road to reform and restitution.

Political Effects

Perhaps the most jarred population where slavery was concerned was that of women. In fact, it was predominately women who jumpstarted the progression of African Americans. Despite their own societal prejudices and oppression of rights, and perhaps because of that similarity shared with blacks, women became the light of hope for many African Americans trapped in slavery and abuse. Alice C. Smith from New York had a heart of gold and worked with troubled women and children. This soon sparked into an active role in fighting the subjugation against African Americans. In reference to the problematic treatment of blacks, Smith replied in an article written in 1913 of her movement, “They are not held by bars or locked doors, but by fear!” (Good Women can Help Solve the Slave Problem, 1913, pg. 1).And indeed, with activism by women and other determined whites, the slave era would begin to crumble.

Sectionalism erupted between the industrial North and agricultural South that included issues such as slavery and statehood (Jewett, L., 2006). Conflict exploded and the civil war began. “For almost a century, the interpretation favored by most historians was one of a mismanaged military occupation of the South by Northerners bent on vengeance against a "prostrate" South” (Ransom, R., 2005).

Abraham Lincoln was president when serious reform began to come alive. Lincoln had a plan that led to the Proclamation to Amnesty and Reconstruction issued in December 1863. This would prevent slavery to expand beyond the states in which slavery already existed. The goal was to eradicate slavery altogether as the injustice and immoral implications of slavery was becoming more obvious. Emancipation of slaves was a major topic for radical republicans, but it was strongly opposed by democrats and southern whites (Davidson, Delay, Heyrman, Lytle, Stoff, 2008). The Confederate Sates of America were formed in rebellion of the United States and the nation’s attempt to end slavery in America.

The United States was experiencing a comfortable economical system with booming growth. There were improvements that made the U.S. powerful in trade and economical independence such as the railroad, the steamboat and the telegraph (Davidson, et al., 2008). The labor situation was one of which most farm and production systems were privileged with the opportunity of free labor from black slaves. As the introduction to possible reform became pronounced, many were against the idea for reasons of bigotry along with the onset of a decline in economic steadfastness.

After Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, possibly because of his determination to end slavery, President Johnson took the reigns of political power. He took over where Lincoln left on in terms of Reconstruction, but with his own agenda. Possibly the most fundamentally significant events in reformation for blacks besides the abolishment of slavery was the insertion of the fourteenth amendment of the Constitution of the United States. This amendment was passed in 1866, taking much power away from the president and securing basic rights to blacks (Davidson, et al., 2008).

It was a long, slow, and dangerous struggle, but slavery was becoming an outlawed institution. Many states refused to uphold the law, making abolishment even more difficult. Political policies of reform bridged the way for necessary steps taken for freed slaves and although most attempts were lacking, the desire to integrate African Americans successfully into the very place they were ostracized was apparent. However, most white southerners took out their anger and frustration against newly freed blacks. This posed a huge threat to freed people and furthermore hindered any progression into mainstream society.

In most cases, slavery was a hell in which any freedom would be highly acceptable. In the collection of several slave narratives, one particular slave named Mary Reynolds recalls slavery being the worst time in her life. “Slavery was the worst days were ever seed in the world. They was things past tellin', but I got the scars on my old body to show to this day" (cited from Fort, 1996, pg. 1). This reflected the poor and usually abusive treatment of blacks as slaves. But even as they became freed, some former slaves held a different view of events in which being free was a much more strenuous and difficult time for them. As Charity Anderson, a former slave who evoked her experience with slavery recalled, “My old Marster [sic] was a good man, he treated all his slaves kind, and took care of dem [sic]" (cited from Fort, 1996, pg. 1). The transition from slavery to freedom was a harsh one for most blacks, who found themselves unprepared for self sufficiency.

Although the eradication of slavery was an enormous step in the right direction if not a singular celebratory event, there was very little done to reform the black population. In essence, they were thrown to the wolves and made to survive in a world that previously marked them as useless and inferior beings. Many whites still held this view, and blacks found themselves in sometimes worse circumstances than during slavery.

Social Effects

While the amended constitutions declared equal rights for blacks including the right to vote, there was still turbulence with social reform for African Americans. The cause of this led to segregation, in which states may have reluctantly upheld the idea of slavery being no longer, but would refuse to accept blacks as regular citizens with civilian rights similar to the white population. (Davidson, et al., 2008).

The most evident problems that occurred due to freeing slaved people were the economical dilemma and the labor force crisis (Leon, F., 1983). Being a nation with abundant sources of free labor, the United States suddenly found itself in an oncoming depression. The freedom of African Americans radically changed the labor force, thus causing more animosity and segregation between races.

The whites were not the only ones who suffered, as newly freed blacks were faced with the impasse of making their own way in society, both financially and socially. Blacks were often the last to be hired, and more than often had to succumb to conditions not unlike slavery in which they would live on plantations owned by whites and given shelter and food in place of wages (Shmidt, R. 2008). Loans, subsidies, and tax exemptions had to be instated in order for there to be a lack of recession in the United States. The economic situation was very fragile, and things did not appear to be getting any better.

As times slowly progressed, blacks were making their way into society with a hope of self reliance and a freedom beyond experience. “In 1865, the Freedman's Bureau Act passed by the U.S. Congress recognized the justice of reparations and allocated 40 acres of land at nominal rent to every former male slave. After this was vetoed by President Andrew Jackson, an alternative proposal in 1867 to provide 40 acres and $50 to all former slaves was also rejected by Congress. However, reparations were never paid to the former slaves, and discrimination supported by law and/or custom has prevented their descendants from closing the Black-White SES gap in the past 140 years” (Williams, D., 2004).

Although it was highly difficult and sometimes impossible for blacks to retain their own land rights and economic independence, some African Americans were given unusual opportunities for such benefits. Benjamin Montgomery was a former slave whose previous owner allotted him the ability to own land. Montgomery extended these rights to several other blacks, heightening the possibility of African Americans to overcome oppression and take hold of their own destinies (Davidson, et al., 2008­).

As time moved on, blacks had managed to progress in society as their own people but they were still burdened by segregation. In the beginning stages of segregation, shortly after slavery was outlawed, the imposition of segregation did not particularly bother most African Americans who were more than pleased to be separate from the whites that so heinously treated the blacks (Paton, A., 1954). However, as the 1950’s approached, it soon became apparent that equal rights were a myth rather than reality when blacks could not acquire the same education as whites, order a hot meal in a restaurant, or attend the zoo on days in which white people were patrons (Davidson, et al., 2008).

Several acts of African Americans began to change the slow progression they experienced in the early nineteenth century. Forms of civil disobedience began to occur substantially throughout the United States. Many of these boycotts were led by the great civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr. (Davidson, et al., 2008). The segregation of blacks soon began to collapse in the face of such movements. Many whites joined in the plights for equal rights for blacks. Eventually, as the progression was evident but still unresponsive to many of the issues that inundated African Americans, violence started to transpire. Whenever an injustice arouse against blacks, there were riots and other violent acts to raise awareness and express anger.

The insolence demonstrated by African Americans was not unmerited. Since the beginning of emancipation, conditions for African Americans were brutal if not completely destitute. Since slavery enforced the denial of rights to certain basic freedoms such as education, marriage, family and financial rights, many blacks found themselves hopelessly thrust into a society they could not become resilient to. Therefore, poverty and destruction was a common thread among African American struggles, and continues to hinder their success today.

Economic conditions remain stagnant and depressing for African Americans today. “In the United States, African-Americans as a socioeconomically group have a lower annual income than White America”, (Holzer, H., 2004). Many reforms have continued to be introduced into America to help shape the success of African Americans and other minorities. Laws forbidding employers or housing to discriminate on the basis of race, color, or creed was integrated into a new social system that is designed to create equal opportunities for all people. Affirmative Action was implemented in 1995 to execute damage control from the past repression of African Americans as well as other minorities to allow higher privileges in education and the workplace. Unfortunately the past cannot be undone, and the pressures to exterminate the effects of slavery and oppression have proven to be a constant struggle. The horrible consequences are palpable in the statistics of African American’s in today’s society. However, growth and success are unmistakable as we see with many social developments for African Americans who fought and won to embrace all opportunities that were allotted to whites. And with steady rises in black enrollment in colleges, business minded African American’s becoming role models of success for others, and especially the most groundbreaking accomplishment of African American’s to date; a black presidential candidate, it seems that America is finally on the road to recovery as is the African American race.

African Americans have faced tremendous challenges from the beginning of history until now.

Struggles are still highly eminent among blacks in today’s society, but great strides have been made to change this. The events of slavery and oppression are still young in history, echoing the hardships that blacks have had to overcome in American. But with the attempts of many whites to change the face of our nation in regards to civil rights for blacks, along with African Americans taking full charge of their future through maintaining strength in cultural bonds and exuding activism, we can now experience the amazing results of diminishing discrimination in our country.


References

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Holzer, H. (2005). My Canes. Black Economics in America. Retrieved October 23, 2008, from http://umsis.miami.edu/~jbrown5/Serious%20Issue.htm.

Franklin, R. (2007). Crisis in the village: Restoring hope in African American communities. New York, New York: Fortress Press.

Good women can help solve the slave problem. (1913). The New York Times, p. X10.

Shmidt, R. (2008). Wisconsin Historical Society. African-American Newspapers and Periodicals. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/libraryarchives/aanp/freedom/

Jewett, L. (2006). Beyond Face Value. Overview of the civil war. Retrieved October 13, 2008, from http://www.lib.lsu.edu/cwc/BeyondFaceValue/overview/index.htm.

Williams , D R. (2004). Reparations: A Viable Strategy to Address the Enigma of African American Health. The American Behavioral Scientist, 47, Retrieved October 12, 2008, from http://prquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=569990701&sid=3&Fmt=4&clientId=7439& RQT+309&VName=PQD.

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Fink, Leon (1983). Union Power, Soul Power: The Story of 1199B and Labor's Search for a Southern Strategy. Southern Changes, 5, Retrieved October 12, 2008, from http://beck.library.emory.edu/southernchanges/article.php?id=sc05-2_006.

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Fort, Bruce (1998). American Slave Narratives. American slave narratives: an online anthology. Retrieved October 3, 2008, from http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/wpa/wpahome.html.

Ransom, R. L. (2005). Reconstructing Reconstruction: Options and Limitations to Federal Policies on Land Distribution in 1866-67. Civil War History, 51. Retrieved October 11, 2008 from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=953756591&sid=2&Fmt=3&clientId=7437 9&RQT=309&VName=PQD.