Glossary
13th Amendment
An amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1865, that abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
Example:
Despite the passage of the 13th Amendment, systems like convict leasing found loopholes to force African Americans into labor, challenging the amendment's full promise.
Black Codes
Laws enacted by Southern states immediately after the Civil War (1865-1866) to severely restrict the freedom and economic opportunities of African Americans.
Example:
A Black Code might have prohibited African Americans from owning land or forced them into exploitative labor contracts, effectively maintaining a system of control similar to slavery.
Convict Leasing
A system in the post-Civil War South where states leased out prisoners, predominantly African Americans arrested for minor offenses, to private companies for forced labor under brutal conditions.
Example:
The brutal system of convict leasing allowed Southern states to profit from the unpaid labor of African Americans, effectively re-enslaving them under the guise of criminal justice.
Crop Liens
A credit system where farmers borrowed money for supplies, using their future crops as collateral, which often led to perpetual debt, especially for sharecroppers.
Example:
A farmer might take out a crop lien to buy seeds and tools, but if the harvest was poor, they would remain indebted to the merchant or landowner, unable to escape the cycle.
Freedmen's Bureau
Officially the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, it was a federal agency established in 1865 to aid newly freed slaves and impoverished whites in the aftermath of the Civil War.
Example:
The Freedmen's Bureau played a crucial role in establishing schools for African Americans and negotiating labor contracts, though its efforts were often hampered by limited resources and political opposition.
Reconstruction Era
The period following the Civil War (1865-1877) focused on rebuilding the South, integrating formerly enslaved people into society, and defining the rights of African Americans.
Example:
During the Reconstruction Era, many African Americans sought to establish schools and churches, symbolizing their newfound freedom and community building.
Sharecropping
An agricultural system that emerged in the post-Civil War South where Black families rented land from white landowners in exchange for a portion of their crops, often leading to cycles of debt.
Example:
Many African American families found themselves trapped in sharecropping arrangements, where high interest rates and unpredictable harvests meant they could never earn enough to buy their own land.
Sherman's Land Order
Also known as Special Field Orders No. 15, this was a Civil War order issued by General William T. Sherman in 1865 that set aside confiscated land in coastal South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida for settlement by freed families.
Example:
The revocation of Sherman's Land Order dashed the hopes of many formerly enslaved people who believed they would finally receive '40 acres and a mule' to achieve economic independence.