Reconstruction or Deconstruction
Uploaded by The Lone Gunman on Nov 02, 2002
Following The War for Southern Independence the radical Republicans of the North took unjust measures over the conquered and impoverished social structure, economy and governments of the defeated southern states.
In fact, the whole idea of “reconstruction” was in fact “deconstruction”. Reconstruction was not to “heal the nation’s wounds,” or to economically revitalize the South (which it did not). Indeed, Reconstruction was economically destructive to the South. The purpose was to continue the economic plundering of the Southern states for as long as possible, and to establish a national Republican party political monopoly.
Congress Passes the Reconstruction Act
On March 2, 1867, Congress passed the Reconstruction Act and thus abolished local civil government in the southern states. It divided the southern states into five military districts—each commanded by a battalion of Federal troops to insure that southern whites were held in total subjugation to every radical Republican policy of the northern politicians.
During this reconstruction period many Northerners came southward to take unfair advantage of a destroyed economic and governmental structure in order to gain political and or financial advantage. These greedy opportunists were self-seeking in their quest to exploit the South. With no regard what so ever to the quiet, peaceful Southerners the Northerners attempted to implement their beliefs and ways of life upon the grieving Southerners.
Carpetbaggers
“Carpetbaggers were supposedly sleazy Northerners who had packed all their weordly goods into a carpetbag suitcase at the war’s end and had come South to seek personal power and profit (2).” Although these carpetbaggers, social legislators including lawmakers, money lenders, financial speculators, educators and even ministers, expressed a “concern” for the social welfare and education of the newly freed black citizens, most of them supported the corrupt schemes of the Reconstruction governments. They did this by instilling in the black population feelings of resentment, revenge and even violence against their former white masters and enlisted them into secret clubs. Under the disguise of “educating” the newly made citizens of the black population they placed in them a false hope of political power and financial success. The Negro’s attempt to fulfill this dream as a free man generally resulted in deep disappointment and failure due to the carpetbaggers false and utopian promises and the Negroes’ idealistic expectations. The Southern Negroes, thinking that they were now free, became nothing more than expendable pawns in the hands of their new “masters”, the shrewd and self-seeking Northern carpetbaggers.
Many Northern Republicans, such...