The reconstruction plan proposed by President Lincoln, also known as the “ten percent plan,” included three parts that proclaimed amnesty to all citizens of the South except Confederate officials and leaders in the military (Corbett et al., 2020). The plan suggested that ten percent of the population of rebel states should pledge allegiance to the United States to allow quick resolution of the emancipation issue and make it more acceptable. The last step of Lincoln’s plan allowed the confederate states to develop new constitutions. As Johnson supported his predecessor’s views, he was willing to promptly return the Southern states to the Union with a forgiving approach. Johnson’s Reconstructions plan suggested amnesty for all rebellious southerners with a return of the property except for slaves, only asking them to confirm their endorsement of the United States Constitution. Johnson’s lenient reconstruction plan resulted in blacks being re-enslaved, which aggravated Johnson’s resistance to Congress (Corbett et al., 2020). Congressional Reconstruction Plan included Civil Rights Bill that provided citizenship for former slaves and Fourteenth Amendment, with a statement that the Union would not welcome back the states that would not ratify the Fourteenth Amendment.
The 1877 Compromise marked the ending of the Reconstruction era as U.S. troops left the South. The compromise had a significant impact on African-Americans, as in the return of federal troops’ withdrawal, the Democrats promised to respect the right of African-Americans. Hayes believed that southerners would be subject to Reconstruction’s constitutional amendments that protected the right of freed slaves (Corbett et al., 2020). However, according to Byman (2021), the Compromise of 1877 resulted in white violence and the era of second slavery, with the disenfranchisement of Black Americans. White supremacy “was backed by the power of law” and supported by elected officials (Byman, 2021). White supremacists reversed the policies developed through Reconstruction to subordinate African-Americans.
References
Corbett, P. S., Janssen, V., Lund, J. M., Pfannestiel, T. J., & Vickery, P. S. (2020). U.S. History. OpenStax College, Rice University.
Byman, D. (2021). White Supremacy, terrorism, and the failure of Reconstruction in the United States. International Security, 46(1), 53–103. Web.