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Black Codes for kids: What were the Black Codes?
The
Black Codes were laws that were
introduced in the Southern States restricting 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. The
Freedom of ex-slaves was restricted in numerous ways including:
● Permission
to travel
●
Segregation
● Different
laws and punishments
● Limited
choice in employment and strict labor contracts
● Permission
required from employers to sell farm produce
● Banned
from bearing arms
● Orphans
placed into forced apprenticeships
● Preventing
Freedmen to vote or serve on juries
Black Codes for kids: Why were the Black Codes passed?
After the Civil War and the passing of the
13th Amendment over 4
million slaves in the Southern states were given their freedom. This
led to a massive labor shortage on the plantations. It also meant
that southern state governments were now responsible for the
ex-slaves who had previously been completely under the control of
slave owners. Having left the slavery of the plantations many Black
American were left without permanent homes or work. The Southerners
were frightened that the freed slaves would seek revenge and feared
for their families and their homes. They began to look for ways to
exercise control. Some took the law into their own hands turning to
Vigilantism using force to protect their lives and property which
led to the establishment of secret organizations such as the
Ku Klux Klan.
Others wanted to maintain the legal route and began passing laws to
restrict the ex-slaves new found freedom. The Black Codes included
new employment laws, requirements to pay taxes and strict Vagrancy
Laws with requirements for travel passes.
What was the Purpose of the
Black Codes?
The
purpose of the Black Codes was to:
● 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
The Black Codes, that included
Vagrancy Laws, led to a system of penalties and punishments
including Convict Leasing that put freed slaves back into forced
labor on the plantations.
Who Created the
Black Codes?
White Southerners resented being ruled by Union military governors
and officials of the
Freedmen’s Bureau
and the objective was to restore self-rule. In 1865, most of the old
Confederate states held constitutional conventions. Only white
people were allowed to vote for convention delegates or to
participate in the framing of the new state governments and
constitutions.
The Black Codes were created by white law makers in the South in the
legislatures of the states of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia,
Louisiana, Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, and North Carolina.
When was the
first of the Black Codes passed?
The first of the Black Codes were passed
in
Mississippi on November 22, 1865, following the end of the Civil War
(April 12, 1861 – May 10, 1865) during the
Reconstruction Era.
How did the
Black Codes deny rights? Examples of
Black Codes
How did the Black Codes deny rights? Each state introduced their own
various Black Codes and laws. Examples of the Black Codes and laws
that restricted the freedom of ex-slaves include the following:
● Labor
Contracts: Labor contracts required included 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
● Vagrancy:
Strict Vagrancy Laws (see below) placed pressure on ex-slaves to
sign labor contracts
● Crimes and
Punishments: Different levels and types of punishment between
freedmen and whites. Punishments included chain gangs and
convict leasing
●
Apprenticeships: Courts were authorized to apprentice the black
children of vagrants, or orphans, even against their will, to an
employer until the age of 21 for males and 18 for females
● Civil
Rights: The Civil Rights of freedmen were restricted in the
Black Codes and unequal
to the Civil Rights of whites
● Courts:
Racially segregated courts were established for black only cases
The
Black Codes and Vagrancy Laws
Vagrancy
Laws were included in the Black Codes because of the concern that
freed slaves would leave their communities and reduce the labor
supply. Vagrancy Laws were offenses applied to people who were
deemed to be vagrants. A vagrant was a person who, although fit to
work, was without visible means of support or a permanent home and
traveled from from place to place without working. The Vagrancy Laws
were extremely vague and covered acts such as loitering. The
Vagrancy Laws in the Black Codes allowed police to arrest people
merely on the suspicion they were about to do something illegal. The
Vagrancy Laws in the Black Codes meant that an unemployed, homeless freed slave could
be arrested and then fined as vagrants.
The
Black Codes and Vagrancy Laws for kids: Punishments - Chain Gangs and Convict
Leasing
If the
person could not afford the fine they were sentenced to county labor
or hired out to a private employer. Those convicted for vagrancy and
sentenced to county labor were used to build roads or railroads on
chain gangs where they could be whipped by guards if they did not
work hard or tried to escape. Plantation owners, or others, who
wanted additional labor went to county courthouses to purchase black
convicts who would otherwise work on a chain gang. The terrible
treatment and deliberate harsh conditions on the chain gangs
encouraged prisoners to see work on a plantation as a preferable
alternative. Convict leasing was a way of moving freed slaves back
into forced labor. A perfectly vicious cycle.
How did Congress Respond to the Black Codes?
The
Republican members of Congress were outraged at the Black Codes and
blamed President Johnson in part for his lenient Reconstruction
polices.
● Congress
refused to seat the Southern representatives
● Congress
overrode President Johnson and passed the
Civil Rights Act of 1866
● 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.
● It also maintained that
Reconstruction was a congressional, not an executive,
function
● The
Fourteenth Amendment was passed by Congress
● A follow-up
Freedmen’s Bureau
Bill was passed by Congress giving additional rights to ex-slaves
●
Reconstruction
Acts
were passed over President Johnson's veto "...to provide for the
more efficient government of the Rebel States"
How did Congress Respond to the Black Codes? The Effect on Ex-Slaves
(Freedmen)
The response to the Black Codes by Congress brought significant
political change to the benefit of the Freedmen.
Most of the Southern states held new constitutional conventions in
1867 and 1868. Congress had insured that this time the ex-slaves
voted and participated in the new state governments. New state
constitutions were created which guaranteed the right of black adult
males to vote and run for public office. For the first time in the
history of the United States some blacks won election to state
legislatures in the South and to Congress. By 1868, most Southern
states had repealed (cancelled) the remains of the Black Code laws.
Black Codes Significance
The
significance of the Black Codes is that they emphasized the
reluctance of the Southern States to change their lifestyle after
the Civil War and during the Reconstruction Era.
Some of the new policies and new
laws passed inflicted hardship on white Southerners and led to the
emergence of unscrupulous and corrupt
Carpetbaggers and
Scalawags. It also
led to the emergence of Southern militant groups such as the
Ku Klux Klan. Whilst in operation the Black
Codes effectively returned political, social and economic control in
ex-Confederate states to white southerners and made clear their
opposition to an equal society as intended under the 13th,
14th and the 15th Amendments of the US Constitution and the
Enforcement Acts were passed
during President Grant's administration. The attitude to
the rights and social status of African Americans reflected in the
Black Codes had to wait one
hundred years for change in the 1960's and the effect of the Civil
Rights Movement and meanwhile the
Jim Crow Laws were enforced,
sanctioned by the federal government as a result of the Supreme
Court decision in the
Plessy vs. Ferguson Case.
Black Codes for kids - Racial Discrimination and Segregation
For additional facts
about racial discrimination and segregation refer to
detailed information on
Black Segregation
History
and for brief, fast
facts refer to the
Segregation History Timeline.
Our article on
Black Populism
tells the history of the African American farmers in
the South.
Black
History for kids: Important People and Events
For visitors interested in African American History
refer to
Black History - People and Events.
A useful resource for
teachers, kids, schools and colleges undertaking
projects for the Black History Month.
Black Codes for kids - President Andrew Johnson Video
The article on the Black Codes provides an overview of one of the Important issues of his presidential term in office
and the reaction of Congress to the Black Codes. The following
Andrew Johnson video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 17th American President whose presidency spanned from April 15, 1865 to March 4, 1869.
Black Codes
●
Interesting Facts about the Black Codes for kids and schools
●
The Reasons and Significance of the
Black Codes
●
The Black Codes, a Important
event in US history
●
Andrew Johnson Presidency and the Black Codes
●
Fast, interesting facts about the Black Codes
●
Domestic
policies of President Andrew Johnson
● Andrew Johnson Presidency and
the Black Codes for schools,
homework, kids and children |
