Reconstruction Era Quiz

Which of the following was not a consequence Southern states faced because of their secession from the United States?

• Ten percent of the population in each state required to take a 'loyalty oath' and pledge their support for the Union.

• Divided the South into five military districts that oversaw the reconstruction and political efforts of the former Confederacy.

• Public acknowledgment that benefiting from the kidnapping and enslavement of Black people was wrong and a commitment to compensation and equality moving forward.

• Mandated the ratification of the 14th amendment granting citizenship to former enslaved Black people.

What was one ramification for formerly enslaved people when President Andrew Johnson revoked Special Field Orders No. 15, which came to be known as 40 acres and a mule?

• Formerly enslaved Black Americans were given the opportunity to cultivate their own land and build their own wealth.

• Southern planters did not lose any land and many formerly enslaved Black Americans became sharecroppers to their former masters.

• The United States government addressed the historical injustices of the kidnapping and enslavement of Black Africans through legislative reparations.

• A precedent was set for monetary justice and an acknowledgment of wrongdoing by the United States government.

Why were Black Codes implemented by many Southern states after the Civil War?

• To ensure a social order similar to the one in existence before the Civil War and rebuild their economy

• To repair the harm caused by the enslavement of Black people and promote equality under the law

• To guarantee fair hiring practices and freedmen would be paid appropriately for their work

• To prevent Black men from being arrested for not having work contract papers in their possession that proved they were contracted for employment for one year.

Why was the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands established by President Abraham Lincoln?

• To provide guidance on how Southern states could ensure the integration of public schools

• To assist in addressing some of the issues that came out of reconstruction following the Civil War in the South such as employment, housing, and healthcare.

• To Support distribution of land outlined in the Special Field Operative.

• To reinforce Black Code Laws.

What were names like "carpetbagger" and "scalawag" meant to do?

• Mock individuals that were opposed to the Civil War and supported reconstruction efforts.

• Deepen the divide between former Confederates and many Northern people.

• Refer to Northerners who were perceived as wanting to profit from the chaos.

• All of the above.

What was a result of the Enforcement Acts passed by the federal government from 1870 to 1871 in an effort to suppress violent attacks by the Ku Klux Klan against Black people?

• Various paramilitary groups, including the Red Shirts, arose in the South to ensure the continued oppression of Black people.

• A decline in the number of lynchings, destruction of property, and intimidation towards Black Americans throughout the South.

• More White merchants began purchasing food and cash crops from freedmen in the South.

• Increase in the buying and selling of small plots of land to Black farmers that contributed to a resurgence of the Southern economy.

Which Supreme Court ruling gave full approval to racial discrimination and set the stage for a "separate but equal" Jim Crow society?

• United States v. Stanley

• Robinson v. Memphis & Charleston Railroad

• United States v. Nichols

• Plessy v. Ferguson

How did the Compromise of 1877 impact Black people in the South?

• Federal interference in the South officially ended and Southern Democrats could overturn the advances Black people had made during Reconstruction.

• Ensured that federal troops remained in Confederate states through the remainder of Rutherford B. Hayes' presidency.

• Provided legislative support for the rebuilding of the South's economy by protecting the rights of freedmen in the workplace.

• United Northern Republicans and Southern Democrats around the issue of advancement of freedmen

How did films such as The Birth of a Nation and Gone with the Wind shape how Black Americans were perceived and treated?

• Portrayed events throughout United States history with accuracy and without bias

• Served as racist propaganda that helped agitate and promote racist attacks by dehumanizing Black people

• Depicted members of the Ku Klux Klan as racist cowards and terrorists instead of saviors and protectors of the South.

• Paints a picture of Southern life that supports the atrocities and hardships experienced by enslaved Black people.

At great risk to her own personal safety, she used her skills as a writer to disprove the common myth that Black men are a threat to White females. Who is she?

• Lavinia Baker

• Billie Holiday

• Ida B. Wells-Barnett

• Nina Simone