Final answer:
After the Civil War, white America had two choices for race relations: embracing full equality and citizenship for African Americans as pushed by Radical Republicans, or resisting this integration and maintaining white supremacy, as seen with the Jim Crow laws and the KKK.
Step-by-step explanation:
Following the Civil War during the period of Reconstruction, white America was presented with two principal choices in race relations. The first was the path advocated by African Americans and Radical Republicans, which sought to realize the Declaration of Independence’s promise of equality by securing citizenship rights for freedpeople. This approach aimed at integrating African Americans fully into American societal, legal, and political frameworks, highlighted by the push for voting rights, equal protection under the law, and the right to hold public office.
On the other hand, there was the choice embodied by white Democrats and white supremacists, who accepted the legal freedom of African Americans but resisted deeper changes to the social and political order. This resistance led to the implementation of the Jim Crow laws, the disenfranchisement of black voters through mechanisms like poll taxes and literacy tests, and the enforcement of racial segregation. This choice often manifested in various forms of racial violence and intimidation, including the actions of groups like the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), aimed at maintaining the status quo of white dominance and preventing the full integration of African Americans into society.