#410 Reconstruction Simulation

Preparation:

• Revise your draft statement from class. You will be asked to submit your completed document at the beginning of next class before we begin our mock convention.
• Please use the following upload link (Canvas) to submit your work before we begin our simulation.

Review the scenario:

1865 marked the end of America’s most terrible war and a year in which decisions involving government and race still echo today. The simulation our class will play focuses on the early choices that began Reconstruction. In this fictitious convention held in Washington D.C. on New Year’s Eve 1865, you and your classmates will try to reach agreement on a set of issues that the United States faced at that time.
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"The First Vote," Harper's Weekly, November 1867.

Procedure:

This Convention is to consider four questions that you have carefully researched using primary sources from Harper’s Weekly and our secondary source selection from Eric Foner.

​We will break up our time into three 12-14 minute sessions that will examine questions #1, #2&3, and #4. Students will have an option of choosing from one of the pre-prepared positions or propose their own resolution if none of the items seem acceptable. During discussion, you should present arguments consistent with your bio and supported by the evidence you have collected.

Question #1: Under what conditions should the South be allowed back into the Union? Who in the former Confederate States of America should be pardoned?

1. The South should expect a long period of military occupation with Southern states readmitted only after agreeing to renounce the right to secession, end slavery, and try all Confederate political and military leaders for treason. Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and other rebel leaders should be executed. All collaborators in the Confederate cause should be stripped of political rights.
2. The South should be temporarily divided into military districts with Southern states readmitted after agreeing to renounce the right to secession, end slavery, and strip former Confederate leaders of the right to vote or stand for office. An oath of allegiance will be required for all former Confederate soldiers.
3. As soon as the President is prepared to initiate the process, Southern states should be reestablished by state-wide conventions, but required to renounce the right to secession, end slavery, and agree to cooperate with the federal government before they are offered readmission to the Union. An oath of allegiance will be required for all former Confederate officeholders and soldiers as a prerequisite for citizenship.
4. State-wide conventions should be held immediately in the South. Congress should be prepared to readmit states on whatever basis these popular conventions agree upon. Confederate officeholders and soldiers should be granted a blanket pardon to promote national reconciliation.

Questions #2&3: What political rights should Free Blacks and Freedmen acquire? What social and economic rights should Free Blacks and Freedmen acquire?

1. Free Blacks and Freedmen should be guaranteed fully equal rights of citizenship and freely sell their labor. In addition, they should be entitled to a high quality education and assistance with housing as needed. To secure these rights, all large- and medium-sized plantations should be divided up into plots of land for former slaves.
2. Free Blacks and Freedmen should be guaranteed full political and economic rights. Schools, housing, and other benefits should be extended based on funds available from Confederate property already seized during the Civil War.
3. Free Blacks and Freedmen should be guaranteed full economic rights and restricted political rights. While the right to freely sell their labor should be respected, literacy tests and “poll” (voting) taxes should limit them from exercising their full rights as citizens. No property should be redistributed and only basic schooling should be provided.
4. Free Blacks and Freedmen should be guaranteed only limited economic rights. While they will no longer be slaves, in most other respects life should go on as normal and we should respect the “Southern way of life.”

Question #4: Should Reconstruction be implemented on a national or state level? Why does this distinction matter?

1. The federal government should make all decisions concerning Reconstruction.
2. The federal government should make most decisions concerning Reconstruction.
3. The state governments should make most decisions concerning Reconstruction.
4. The state governments should make nearly all decisions concerning Reconstruction.

Homework: #411