Reconstruction

Reconstruction

Thesis statement

The reconstruction plan of Abraham Lincoln would have better suited the American society on a whole by laying the seeds for ending racism within the course of a short time had it been implemented, and a better working relationship could have been formed between Lincoln and the congress despite their differences as compared to the relationship that the later president, Andrew Johnson had with the congress.

Introduction

A lot has been written and said about the Lincoln's reconstruction plan and how it would have affected the United States had it been implemented. No one would ever know for sure how the Southern and the entire American landscape would have emerged had Lincoln lived. It also remains unclear how the social situation especially with regards to racism against African-Americans would have emerged. Nevertheless, one thing is for certain, and that is the emerging scenario would have been much better for the black population had Lincoln been alive. It would then have benefited the American society on a whole. Keeping in mind the diastase that Lincoln had for slavery and racism on the basis of color, it is quite evident that the anti-social laws such as the “black codes” that had been passed against the Negro population in the South of America would never have taken place.

It goes out quite ironic in history that a defeated people would still go on to exhibit such massive influence and escape vengeance in the way the Southerners did after their defeat at the hands of the Union army. That escape too occurred on account of a person who had been so vocal in calling for the confederates to be punished and for the rights of the blacks to be protected. The failure of Johnson's reconstruction plan to contain racism only served as a source of degrading the American society in the upcoming decades. There would have been no reason for the likes of Martin King Luther Jr, to emerge on the political front and to rally for the rights of the blacks had Lincoln lived to oversee his reconstruction plan go into effect. Thus, on whole, the political landscape of the United States would have been much different, and the blacks could have been saved from decades of suppression and humiliation they were forced to go through. Even Langston Hughes would have found no need to write his poem “Let America be America again,” there would have been no Montgomery bus boycott, and no “I have a dream speech.”

Discussion

No one today and no one in April 1865 could have speculated how the reconstruction process would have had been handled by Abraham Lincoln. The same ignorance exists with regards to how the disputes with Congress or the White Southerners would have been handled by Lincoln. However, history is very clear about how these issues were treated by Lincoln's successor, Andrew Johnson. Johnson who had been outspoken of the confederates, and was desirous of imposing harsh punishments on the Southerners for their rebellion was welcomed ...