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--- ---were laws passed by Southern states in 1865 and 1866, after the Civil War. These laws had the intent and the effect of restricting African Americans' freedom, and of compelling them to work in a labor economy based on low wages or debt.

Since the early 1800s, many laws in both North and South discriminated systematically against free Blacks. In the South, "slave codes" placed significant restrictions on Black Americans who were not themselves slaves. A major purpose of these laws was maintenance of the system of white supremacy that made slavery possible.

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Final answer:

The Black Codes were discriminatory laws passed in the Southern states post-Civil War, designed to limit African Americans' freedoms and enforce a labor system that mirrored slavery. They restricted basic rights and maintained the social and economic structures of white supremacy.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Black Codes were laws passed by Southern states in 1865 and 1866, following the end of the Civil War. Their main purpose was to restrict the freedoms of African Americans and to enforce a labor economy that closely resembled slavery.

During the post-Civil War period, the South faced the challenge of transitioning from a slave-based economy to one reliant on free labor. Planters were resistant to this change and thus drafted the Black Codes to perpetuate the antebellum economic structure under the guise of freedom.

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