The civil war had a great effect on the United States. Those who disagreed with the running of the country now found that they were able to remove themselves and become their own 'individual state.' This raised tensions in the country as the North and the South disagreed on many things. The biggest social issue during this time was slavery/racism. The civil war put all sides of the battle at great risk as differing opinions were more or less a matter of life and death at this point.