Congress and the First Civil Rights Era, 1861-1918
Jeffery A. Jenkins and Justin Peck
Abstract
This book tells the story of the rise and fall of the First Civil Rights Era—which extends from 1861 through 1918, or the Civil War through the First World War—viewed through the lens of action in the U.S. Congress. During that time, the formal status of African-Americans in the United States shifted from slave to citizen and then to something in between. We explore how Republicans in Congress, aided by the political activism of black citizens in the states, used legal enactments to establish an inclusive, multi-racial democracy in the United States. We also explain why their efforts could not ... More
This book tells the story of the rise and fall of the First Civil Rights Era—which extends from 1861 through 1918, or the Civil War through the First World War—viewed through the lens of action in the U.S. Congress. During that time, the formal status of African-Americans in the United States shifted from slave to citizen and then to something in between. We explore how Republicans in Congress, aided by the political activism of black citizens in the states, used legal enactments to establish an inclusive, multi-racial democracy in the United States. We also explain why their efforts could not survive a political onslaught carried out by 19th century white supremacists and their more “moderate” allies. In sum, over the years that define this era, civil rights politics went from being a central preoccupation for members of Congress to almost entirely disappearing from the agenda. By the second decade of the 20th century both political parties wholly abandoned black civil rights in the name of national reconciliation and political opportunism. Our detailed analysis of civil rights bills provides a granular look at the way the Republican Party slowly withdrew its support for a meaningful civil rights agenda, as well as how both Democrats and Republicans, at various points, worked together to keep civil rights off the legislative agenda.
Keywords:
Congress,
civil rights,
African Americans
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2021 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780226756226 |
| Published to Chicago Scholarship Online: January 2022 |
DOI:10.7208/chicago/9780226756530.001.0001 |
Authors
Affiliations are at time of print publication.
Jeffery A. Jenkins, author
University of Southern California
Justin Peck, author
Wesleyan University
More
Less
