Government and Civil Rights

The American Civil War is one of the most horrific times in U.S. history. Many people seem to not grasp what the war was over or why it started.

Many feel that upholding slavery was the primary reason why southern people of the U.S. wanted to succeed from the Union. They ignore the fact that the Southern States were not equally represented in government. They also ignore the fact that at the time of succession abolition of slavery was not on the government agenda.

Many Southern State Governments wanted to succeed because they felt they could better represent the people and the agricultural economy coming out of the region. Slavery was an issue that came about later within the presidential administration of Abraham Lincoln.

After the war ended the 14th Amendment was ratified by congress to truly free all the slaves in the U.S. Many new beginnings and new problems arose in the nation.

Freedmen now had opportunities they had not enjoyed before but the former slave owners did not want this. They felt that the white race was superior and that the freedmen would be a detriment to the nation.

Out of this dilemma came many possible resolutions but most seem to fall short. The Freedmen’ s Bureau and other organizations fought for civil rights. Almost from the beginning of Reconstruction.

Freedmen now had the tasking of starting a life. There were many different attempts that were unsuccessful as well.  Freedmen saw themselves as equal to their former owners. The former owners did not agree with this sentiment.

They key things to point out I am pointing out is that slavery was the first time that the government took upon the responsibility of a social issue. Many social issues were prevalent prior to the Civil War i.e. woman suffrage, slavery, immigration, and laborer rights to name a few.

Most of these issues got put aside when the war broke out so as not to divide the nation even more. Slavery however took center stage in 1863 when President Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation. Then pushed for the 14^th Amendment during reconstruction.

Although, this great atrocity was something that needed to be destroyed. No other time in American history had a President made a social issue the matter of the government. This led to repercussions that have reverberated throughout the history of the US.

From labor issues to woman suffrage the Federal Government has taken up arms on many issues and continue to do so today. State government laws are being stamped out by the U.S. Federal Government.

One cannot argue against the belief that slavery was an atrocity and needed to be ended. This issue needed to be shouldered.  Where, however, is the line in the sand for people to take personal responsibility today? The State Governments need to stand up and start making sensible laws as well.