The Wars of Reconstruction
| The Wars of Reconstruction: The Brief, Violent History of America's Most Progressive Era | |
| 200px|alt=Cover Book cover for The Wars of Reconstruction | |
| Author(s) | Douglas R. Egerton |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Press |
| Publication date | 2014 |
| Pages | 438 pages |
| ISBN | 978-1-60819-573-2 |
| OCLC Number | 827256869 |
Douglas Egerton's The Wars of Reconstruction is a book that looks at the political offices held by blacks during the reconstruction period. Furthermore, this book looks at the ways that white allies and black activist, veterans, ministers, as well as other black leaders were willing to risk their lives during this period to end a racial presidency as well as challenging the everyday notions of racism in the south. Egerton argues through this lens that the Reconstruction era was not a failure but rather a time for progressive reformation to take place in the south. The first chapter of the book discusses how the Union slowly allowed black soldiers to fight during the civil war. This chapter also discusses the ways that black soldiers had to fight to be treated equally and obtain an equal wage for their service. The second chapter discusses the fugitive slaves and race relations during this period by looking at how black slaves learned as children how to interact with white people. Egerton uses this section to talk about the contraband act that was passed by the Union, and the many white owners who had false perceptions of their slaves as being devoted which was disrupted as slaves left their plantation or claimed their owners material property such as beds, clothing, and other goods. The following discusses the north or in this case, the "Yankees" influence in the south particularly through the Freedmen's Bureau and the other orders put in place by the Northern government that established. However, with the death of Abraham Lincoln, many of the government orders established were later removed by the new president Andrew Johnson. Thus, Egerton shows how the removal of government supported foundation for freed blacks helped in creating a large effort by the black community for establishing institutions for their own community. However, as can be seen in the following chapters, the effort by the black community to uplift their own was met with white suppression and resulted in violence such as the burning of black institutions as well as the massacre of black bodies. However, this does not stop blacks and their white allies from trying to create opportunities within their community. In the final chapter of the book Egerton, connects the history of the Reconstruction era with the climate of 2014 by looking at the ways that white confederate history has been memorialized with the creation of institutions and statues. Egerton calls for his readers to look at the ways that South Carolina had not created a statue celebrating many of their firts black elected officials until then. Overall this book causes the reader to see the impact that the reconstruction era had in creatign oppurtunities for the black community by offerign them a space and time; although it was limited, to excercise thier newly gained freedoms.
