A Century of Segregation

was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 to henceforth prohibit

1863 - 1880

The Emancipation Proclamation

slavery. He had been urged by abolitionists and opposed slavery himself, but he wanted a northern victory first.

Reconstruction

is a term given to the years between 1865 and 1877 when the government established

the conditions that would readmit the southern states into the Union. The Radicals, antislavery Republicans, clashed with Lincoln and pushed for more African American rights. When Lincoln was assassinated, President Andrew Johnson took over and gained little support for his anti-African American beliefs.

The 14th Amendment

was ratified in 1848 and granted voting rights to African-American men.

President Johnson opposed the passing of this amendment, but the Radicals overpowered him.

The Civil Rights Act

was passed in 1875 and promised all citizens equal rights. It was a last attempt by

Republican-controlled Congress to keep Reconstruction going.