Question

Perhaps the biggest hurdle to the success of Reconstruction was the failure of whites to accept the new position blacks had in this country. Why would they have so much difficulty in accepting them?

Answer 1

White southerners had difficulty accepting African Americans in positions of power during Reconstruction due to entrenched racial prejudices and the upheaval of traditional social structures. Despite the efforts of Reconstruction policies to create equality, backlash and the reestablishment of white supremacy through Jim Crow laws ensured the continuation of racial discrimination.

Step-by-step explanation:

The difficulty in accepting African Americans into positions of power during the Reconstruction era largely stemmed from deeply ingrained racial prejudices and the disruption of the traditional social order. White Southerners reacted with outrage when previously enslaved individuals began to serve in authoritative roles such as sheriffs, congressmen, and city council members. This period of reform, aimed to undermine the traditional social and economic foundations of the South, was pejoratively referred to as 'negro misrule' by indignant Southerners.

Moreover, some believed that federal authorities were unresponsive or biased, labeling Northern newcomers as 'carpetbaggers' seeking wealth, and Southern whites who cooperated with Reconstruction efforts as 'scalawags.' While some individuals and Republicans, both Southern and Northern, supported the ideals of equality and a postwar South free from old Confederate control, the larger societal acceptance was lacking. Ultimately, despite some progress, white supremacy reemerged, with conservative white Democrats establishing segregation laws and disenfranchising black voters through arbitrary literacy tests and burdensome poll taxes, continuing the limits on African American freedom.

Answer 2

It can generally be attributed to deep rooted racist ideals and White anger.

Step-by-step explanation:

The failure of Whites to accept the new position Blacks had in the country can be attributed to deep rooted, long standing beliefs regarding the inferiority of African Americans as used to justify slavery. Ideas like the superiority of Whites and the inferiority of another race, White supremacy and racism, designated Blacks as below human in Southern, and in many instances, Northern society. In the South, with these ideals combined with a bitter defeat against the North and economic ruin, Whites were generally very angry. In their eyes, the Freedmen they had once owned as slaves did not deserve to stand on equal ground or vote as American citizens. Throughout the South, Freedmen also outnumbered White people in many instances. For this reason, voting Blacks held political power that Whites saw as a threat. Such harmful views towards Blacks and Black freedoms would severely inhibit their integration into American society as equals and continues to negatively impact America today.