Final answer:
Andrew Johnson's lenient Reconstruction policies and failure to protect the rights of newly freed African Americans indirectly sanctioned acts of violence post-Civil War.
Step-by-step explanation:
President Andrew Johnson’s approach to Reconstruction appears to have indirectly sanctioned acts of violence by providing lenient policies towards the South after the Civil War. Initially aligning with the Radical Republicans, Johnson later shifted his stance and sought a quick restoration of Southern states into the Union, with minimal federal intervention and protection for newly freed African Americans.
He allowed provisional Southern governments great liberty, pardoning all those who participated in the rebellion, aside from wealthy planters. This effectively restored power to those who had been part of the Confederacy and allowed them to establish restrictive laws such as the Black Codes. The violence that ensued, such as race riots in Memphis and New Orleans, happened in a context where federal protection was insufficient due to Johnson's lenient Reconstruction policies.