Question

During Reconstruction, the Black Codes

A)

protected the Constitutional rights and liberties of freed slaves.

B)

forced Congress to do the bidding of former Confederate politicians.

C)

were enacted by the Radical Republicans to prevent racial discrimination in the South.

D)

were laws passed by mainly Southern states to keep African Americans in a system of virtual slavery.

Answer 1

Black Codes were instituted on a state level and were passed by mainly Southern states to keep African Americans in a system of virtual slavery. These are NOT the same things as “Jim Crow” laws, which were brought to bear at the end of the 19th century.

Answer 2

During Reconstruction, the Black Codes were D) laws passed by mainly Southern states to keep African Americans in a system of virtual slavery. The Black Codes were laws to restrict the freedom of movement of African-Americans (even though they were not all slaves) and to segregate White Americans and African-Americans. It also worked to keep African-Americans with low wage jobs, so that they could not move upwards in the social ladder. It also allowed policemen to arrest African-American people and force them into involuntary labor (which is a type of slavery).