The different periods of black sacrifice can be broken down into the following categories: Slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, The Second Reconstruction, and The New Jim Crow.
Slavery:
1619-1865
Slavery, in America, was the ownership of one race of people by another, lasting more than 200 years. It originated in the Thirteen Colonies as hundreds of thousands of blacks were shipped from Africa against their will to the New World. By 1804, slavery had been abolished in the northern states and left to fester in the South on plantations and small farms, where former Africans harvested rice, cotton, and other crops from sunrise to sunset without compensation six days a week. Others labored as skilled artisans, cooks, or caretakers for their masters with little hope for a brighter tomorrow.
Slaveholders, most of whom were vicious, imposed harsh penalties for slaves who dared escape or defy the system, including flogging, maiming, and even death. Family members were often sold downriver or split up as another means of keeping slaves in check, resulting in desperate attempts to reunite with lost loved ones after emancipation.
Many leaders emerged during this period to help eliminate involuntary servitude, such as Sojourner Truth, an ex-slave who made anti-slavery speeches in the North, and Frederick Douglass, also a former slave, who protested the enslavement of his people in the North Star, a paper he founded, and Harriet Tubman, who after escaping to freedom herself, returned as many as nineteen times to Southern and border States to free other men, women, and children. The long-awaited end to human captivity in America, brought about by the Civil War, thrust the freedmen into a world of unforeseen possibilities.
Reconstruction:
1865-1877
A brief period of reconciliation followed slavery, where attempts were made to rebuild the South in the interest of former slaves. Congress established the Freedmen's Bureau to help build schools and other institutions for African Americans, as well as to assist with job training and land ownership. Efforts were also made to protect the Freedmen's economic and political rights by using a contingent of Union Soldiers after the war. Congress later passed, and the States ratified the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which barred slavery; the 14th Amendment, which extended citizenship rights to former slaves; and the 15th Amendment, which granted the right to vote to black men. During this time, African Americans excelled in education, economics, and politics, particularly in South Caraolna, where black politicians reportedly outnumbered white elected officials in the Statehouse shortly after receiving their freedom. Sadly, equality in the ex-Confederacy ended as abruptly as it started when the Northern Army sworn to protect blacks was pulled out due to the Compromise of 1876, when the Republican candidate for president pledged to end Federal involvement in the region in exchange for disputed electoral votes.
Jim Crow:
1876-1965
A tragic era of racism and discrimination occurred in the aftermath of Reconstruction due to a loosening of Northern support for African Americans in the South, deep resentment of the gains made by blacks during the years following slavery, and Plessy v. Ferguson, which laid the foundation for separate and unequal facilities in America. In the South, Jim Crow laws were passed that prevented blacks from having equal access to goods and services, including hospitals and where they could live. At the same time, covert racism in the North, such as redlining, created ghettos and food deserts. During this period, hundreds of innocent African American men and women were lynched, and scores of black men were confined to work camps on false allegations, which negatively impacted African American families. Southern and border states also set up separate and unequal systems of public education for blacks and whites that spun deep-seated poverty in the black community for generations to come. Additionally, the right to vote and other liberties bestowed upon all Americans in the Constitution were restricted or terminated altogether for nonwhites, especially in the old Confederacy, until Congress passed the Civil Rights Act at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, or what some have called the second Civil War.
The Second Reconstruction:
1965-2008
From 1954 to 1968, African Americans fought a battle for justice and peace known as the Civil Rights Movement. As a result, programs and laws were enacted to remedy nearly 100 years of Jim Crow-style discrimination against African Americans. For example, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and fair housing legislation, among countless other measures, to give blacks and other disenfranchised groups an equal shot at living the American dream. Affirmative Action policies also went into effect to undo injustices in employment, business ownership, and college enrollment for people of color. Due to federal efforts to combat racism in the 1960s, job opportunities and homeownership among African Americans increased dramatically in the 1970s and beyond. In addition, black enrollment in predominantly white colleges jumped in the 1980s and 1990s, especially in Georgia and Mississippi. Lastly, the number of minority elected officials skyrocketed between 1968 and 2008, culminating in the election of the nation's first African American president.
The New Jim Crow:
2009-Present
The election of Barack Obama as President in 2008 ushered in the Second Jim Crow, according to historians. As was the case in the 1870s, there is a backlash in America regarding the progress that has been made by African Americans since the Civil Rights Movement, or a widely held belief that the horror inflicted upon black people during slavery or otherwise has been dealt with successfully by the white power structure. It resulted in unemployment in the black community of more than 14 percent during the Great Recession, which remains the highest of all ethnic groups in the country. Additionally, several states passed voter ID laws after the 2008 election, while the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965. To add insult to injury, the Republican majority in Congress has blocked many of President Obama's initiatives and refuse to bring many of his judicial nominees to a vote in the Senate amid a sharp increase in the number of African American men incarcerated since Obama's election and a noticeable uptick in incidents of police brutality in the black community and elsewhere.
Reconstruction:
1865-1877
A brief period of reconciliation followed slavery, where attempts were made to rebuild the South in the interest of former slaves. Congress established the Freedmen's Bureau to help build schools and other institutions for African Americans, as well as to assist with job training and land ownership. Efforts were also made to protect the Freedmen's economic and political rights by using a contingent of Union Soldiers after the war. Congress later passed, and the States ratified the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which barred slavery; the 14th Amendment, which extended citizenship rights to former slaves; and the 15th Amendment, which granted the right to vote to black men. During this time, African Americans excelled in education, economics, and politics, particularly in South Caraolna, where black politicians reportedly outnumbered white elected officials in the Statehouse shortly after receiving their freedom. Sadly, equality in the ex-Confederacy ended as abruptly as it started when the Northern Army sworn to protect blacks was pulled out due to the Compromise of 1876, when the Republican candidate for president pledged to end Federal involvement in the region in exchange for disputed electoral votes.
Jim Crow:
1876-1965
A tragic era of racism and discrimination occurred in the aftermath of Reconstruction due to a loosening of Northern support for African Americans in the South, deep resentment of the gains made by blacks during the years following slavery, and Plessy v. Ferguson, which laid the foundation for separate and unequal facilities in America. In the South, Jim Crow laws were passed that prevented blacks from having equal access to goods and services, including hospitals and where they could live. At the same time, covert racism in the North, such as redlining, created ghettos and food deserts. During this period, hundreds of innocent African American men and women were lynched, and scores of black men were confined to work camps on false allegations, which negatively impacted African American families. Southern and border states also set up separate and unequal systems of public education for blacks and whites that spun deep-seated poverty in the black community for generations to come. Additionally, the right to vote and other liberties bestowed upon all Americans in the Constitution were restricted or terminated altogether for nonwhites, especially in the old Confederacy, until Congress passed the Civil Rights Act at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, or what some have called the second Civil War.
The Second Reconstruction:
1965-2008
From 1954 to 1968, African Americans fought a battle for justice and peace known as the Civil Rights Movement. As a result, programs and laws were enacted to remedy nearly 100 years of Jim Crow-style discrimination against African Americans. For example, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and fair housing legislation, among countless other measures, to give blacks and other disenfranchised groups an equal shot at living the American dream. Affirmative Action policies also went into effect to undo injustices in employment, business ownership, and college enrollment for people of color. Due to federal efforts to combat racism in the 1960s, job opportunities and homeownership among African Americans increased dramatically in the 1970s and beyond. In addition, black enrollment in predominantly white colleges jumped in the 1980s and 1990s, especially in Georgia and Mississippi. Lastly, the number of minority elected officials skyrocketed between 1968 and 2008, culminating in the election of the nation's first African American president.
The New Jim Crow:
2009-Present
The election of Barack Obama as President in 2008 ushered in the Second Jim Crow, according to historians. As was the case in the 1870s, there is a backlash in America regarding the progress that has been made by African Americans since the Civil Rights Movement, or a widely held belief that the horror inflicted upon black people during slavery or otherwise has been dealt with successfully by the white power structure. It resulted in unemployment in the black community of more than 14 percent during the Great Recession, which remains the highest of all ethnic groups in the country. Additionally, several states passed voter ID laws after the 2008 election, while the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965. To add insult to injury, the Republican majority in Congress has blocked many of President Obama's initiatives and refuse to bring many of his judicial nominees to a vote in the Senate amid a sharp increase in the number of African American men incarcerated since Obama's election and a noticeable uptick in incidents of police brutality in the black community and elsewhere.
The whitewashing of history is another tactic of The New Jim Crow, which aims to omit the accomplishments of Black people in Science, Technology, and other endeavors. It also seeks to rewrite the past in favor of whites by downplaying the effects of Slavery, Jim Crow, and racism by banning the teaching of subjects in school that shed light on what people of color have endured in this country at the hands of the oppressor, and their endurance as a people. It is up to blacks and like-minded individuals to reveal the truth.
America needs to acknowledge the dilemma of race relations. It involves mistreating a minority population by the majority, which could spell disaster.
America needs to acknowledge the dilemma of race relations. It involves mistreating a minority population by the majority, which could spell disaster.
