Posted on 01/24/2006 8:13:12 PM PST by jyro
The assassination of Abraham Lincoln at the very moment of the Union's victory led to a rupture between the new Democrat President, Andrew Johnson, and the Republican party, which controlled Congress. Democrat President Andrew Johnson feared and despised blacks and was happy to see them become second-class citizens under the control of their former masters.
The Republican party, however, believed that the federal government had a duty to protect the former slaves from being exploited and abused. The 1866 Civil Rights Bill therefore declared that 'all persons born in the United States' were citizens, and that all citizens were entitled to 'full and equal benefit of the laws'. Johnson vetoed it. After a vicious power struggle, Congress imposed its will. It made racial discrimination illegal. Blacks gained the right to vote and hold office. Northern teachers went South to set up black schools and universities. The Republican party, with solid black support, ruled the South.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
I thought it was because we new we weren't wrong.
...and that doing the right thing wasn't always easy, but it was always RIGHT ;-)
I thought it was because we new how to spell.
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