Reconstruction Convention

The reconstruction of the south was one of the biggest issues following the Civil War.

Many people had different opinions as to how to rebuild the south after they had lost the war

which was demonstrated in class during our reconstruction convention. The class spoke their

opinion and voted on different issues such as what should be done with freedmen and freed

slaves, who should control the reconstruction, and under what circumstances should the south be

let back into the Union.

To begin, the class had the discussion on what should be done with the newly freed slaves

in the south. We talked about three different aspects which were political rights, economic rights,

and social rights. For the political rights, some people believe that they should not get any rights

because they are a different color than whites thus making them inferior. Others said that they

should have the same rights as whites because they are now citizens of the US and should be

treated equal. When put in a vote the class decided that they shall receive the same rights as

whites. As for economic rights, some believed that the freed slaves should not receive anything

while others believed that they should be allowed land if they earn it themselves. The class voted

on the idea of African Americans not having any economic rights as well as saying that the

government cannot confiscate land and redistribute. The last right that the class voted on was

social rights. One idea that was presented to the class was to give the African Americans Alaska

for themselves where they can do as they please but this was thrown out the window when it

came down to voting. The class wanted to give the freed slaves the same social rights as whites

but with a few regulations. There shall me no interracial relations between an African American

and a white. While freed slaves can start going to school, vote, and more, the implication of

black codes will stay the same.

 Continuing, the discussion of who shall control the reconstruction between the president

and congress was brought up. Some of the class believed that it would be better for the president

to control the reconstruction. They explained their view on why by telling the class that one

person should be controlling it instead of congress which is comprised of many different

representatives and may different opinions. The president would reconstruct the South faster

because it is one man and he doesnt have to take in the account of other peoples opinions

because he is the president. The other side of the class believed that congress should control the

reconstruction to allow more ideas on the best way to reconstruct the South. The congress won

when we put it to a vote. We also decided that there shall be no Southern representatives in

congress unless they follow the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment of the constitution. This is the

same that actually happened where the people voted that congress should control and oversee the

reconstruction of the South because it gives too much power to the president.

Lastly, we took on the discussion of if the South should be allowed back into the Union

and also what should be done with the confederate generals, soldiers, etc. To start off, the class

was very split about the idea of letting the South join the Union once again after they had left,

fought, and lost against the Union. Some strongly believed that the Union should not show

mercy toward the South because they had decided to leave and it should be hard for them to be

allowed back into the Union once again. Others thought that we should show mercy on them and

easily allow them back into the Union even through all that they had done. The class voted and

decided that they should be easily readmitted back into the Union. As for the soldiers and

generals in the confederated army, some thought that they should be executed for fighting against

the Union while others thought that they should be pardoned for everything that they had done
because they had been fighting for what they believe in just like the Union was. The class voted

and decided to be merciful toward the soldiers and generals.

Through the reconstruction convention simulation, it allowed the class to see the different

opinions of so many people and they challenge they had to face as a nation. These many different

people and their different views created a struggle to find the right way to reconstruct the South

to prevent another war from happening. In the end, they had to make a decision as to what to do

to please as many people as possible and it obviously worked because here we are today