Who Was It?
You cannot understand the present unless you understand the past. The present is only the momentary continuation of the past and is part and parcel with the same.
So why is it that when American history is discussed, be it in schools or books, that we seem to skip from the freeing of the slaves right to the beginning of the first World War?
One would almost think that slavery ended with the end of the civil war. It did not. It might have ended in name, but it was not over in reality.
The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were obeyed in the south only because the union troops, underneath the command of the brutal but efficient Sherman, ensured it with force. The black populace voted for the republicans; the party of the abolition.
Republican power during this short span was greater than it ever was and will ever be again. And the black populace enjoyed greater civil rights than they would until the mid twentieth century.
1866 saw the formation of the KKK; the, evil, white trash, scrub bastard, paramilitary wing of the democrat party. When Grant ran for office the first time, he won by a wide margin, but not as wide as he expected. The reason was poor black voter turnout in the south. To be precise, in at least 11 counties in Alabama, Grant did not receive a single vote. In fact, oddly enough, the normally enthusiastically political black populace had not cast a single vote, even though they made up 45% of the population of those counties.
The truth was that grant received almost no black votes in the south, except near 100% black turnout in places where the federal army was strong. The abuse of blacks and republicans by white democrats had begun...I don't think it is probably totally over either.
(humorous aside: this is when Grant established the National Rifle Association for the purpose of shooting those Klan S.o.Bs and to protect republican and black voters)
When Hayes claimed a narrow victory in 1877, the republicans agreed to compromise. The gutless weasels were compromising more than they knew.
The compromise of 1877 pulled the federal military out of the south. The 13,000 confederate landholders pardoned by Johnson went right back to their land and started using every trick they knew to re-enslave the now free blacks. Jim crow laws, exorbitant taxes if you tried to do anything but sharecrop a white person's land or clean a white person's house. They functionally re-instated slavery.
And are we surprised, after seeing black republicans elected to office during federal occupation, that we saw no more black legislators or officials from the south after the army left? That once the protection stopped the KKK and poor whites, with the direction of rich whites and democrat bosses(a senator included), started terrorizing the black citizens and republicans. Republicans got a choice, leave or die. Blacks got a choice, dance or die.
1877 destroyed the republican party in the south and doomed republicans in general to a slow slide into mediocrity, and they deserved it. Their spineless self interest condemned the blacks of the south to a slow, torturous, humiliating, gratuitous descent into abused second-class citizen status, which condition they were held in until just 40 years ago.
What is sickening is that the democrats made the black population love them. Despite the fact that the men who loosed dogs on civil rights protesters were good southern democrats. Despite the fact that there is an ex Kleagle of the Klan sitting in the senate with a D by his name. I will save my rant about our current brand of benign racism for a later date.
I know when the shift came and it was not democrats who brought it about. The change in perception was brought about by another force who found a ready home with both republicans and democrats. This force, however, found that the democrats made an infinitely more loyal and obeisant host. But this is another history lesson.
Republicans were the party of abolition, of freedom. They may just be democrat light now, but there was a time when they had potential.
Know the past. The democrats take power wherever and however they can. Republicans are gutless and faithless, willing to sell their principles--perhaps their very souls--for the democrat's political scraps. The republicans sold out the black populace 132 years ago, and, in typical fashion, the democrats bought.
So why is it that when American history is discussed, be it in schools or books, that we seem to skip from the freeing of the slaves right to the beginning of the first World War?
One would almost think that slavery ended with the end of the civil war. It did not. It might have ended in name, but it was not over in reality.
The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were obeyed in the south only because the union troops, underneath the command of the brutal but efficient Sherman, ensured it with force. The black populace voted for the republicans; the party of the abolition.
Republican power during this short span was greater than it ever was and will ever be again. And the black populace enjoyed greater civil rights than they would until the mid twentieth century.
1866 saw the formation of the KKK; the, evil, white trash, scrub bastard, paramilitary wing of the democrat party. When Grant ran for office the first time, he won by a wide margin, but not as wide as he expected. The reason was poor black voter turnout in the south. To be precise, in at least 11 counties in Alabama, Grant did not receive a single vote. In fact, oddly enough, the normally enthusiastically political black populace had not cast a single vote, even though they made up 45% of the population of those counties.
The truth was that grant received almost no black votes in the south, except near 100% black turnout in places where the federal army was strong. The abuse of blacks and republicans by white democrats had begun...I don't think it is probably totally over either.
(humorous aside: this is when Grant established the National Rifle Association for the purpose of shooting those Klan S.o.Bs and to protect republican and black voters)
When Hayes claimed a narrow victory in 1877, the republicans agreed to compromise. The gutless weasels were compromising more than they knew.
The compromise of 1877 pulled the federal military out of the south. The 13,000 confederate landholders pardoned by Johnson went right back to their land and started using every trick they knew to re-enslave the now free blacks. Jim crow laws, exorbitant taxes if you tried to do anything but sharecrop a white person's land or clean a white person's house. They functionally re-instated slavery.
And are we surprised, after seeing black republicans elected to office during federal occupation, that we saw no more black legislators or officials from the south after the army left? That once the protection stopped the KKK and poor whites, with the direction of rich whites and democrat bosses(a senator included), started terrorizing the black citizens and republicans. Republicans got a choice, leave or die. Blacks got a choice, dance or die.
1877 destroyed the republican party in the south and doomed republicans in general to a slow slide into mediocrity, and they deserved it. Their spineless self interest condemned the blacks of the south to a slow, torturous, humiliating, gratuitous descent into abused second-class citizen status, which condition they were held in until just 40 years ago.
What is sickening is that the democrats made the black population love them. Despite the fact that the men who loosed dogs on civil rights protesters were good southern democrats. Despite the fact that there is an ex Kleagle of the Klan sitting in the senate with a D by his name. I will save my rant about our current brand of benign racism for a later date.
I know when the shift came and it was not democrats who brought it about. The change in perception was brought about by another force who found a ready home with both republicans and democrats. This force, however, found that the democrats made an infinitely more loyal and obeisant host. But this is another history lesson.
Republicans were the party of abolition, of freedom. They may just be democrat light now, but there was a time when they had potential.
Know the past. The democrats take power wherever and however they can. Republicans are gutless and faithless, willing to sell their principles--perhaps their very souls--for the democrat's political scraps. The republicans sold out the black populace 132 years ago, and, in typical fashion, the democrats bought.
The fact that you have the time to write a blog post like this indicates to me that you are not taking enough classes.
ReplyDeleteThat you were able to comment on this post indicates to me that Jane doesn't work you hard enough.
ReplyDelete