After the Civil War, America went through a period of reconstruction. It was at this time that the former Confederate States were readmitted to the Union. Lincoln had a plan that would allow them to return, but they couldn't do it easily. He would make 10% of the population swear loyalty and establish a recognized government. However, he was assassinated at Ford's Theater and Andrew Johnson became president; Johnson provided an easy path for southerners. Congress did its best to guarantee equal rights to freedmen, but failed because of groups opposed to Reconstruction, the takeover of the government by white Southern Democrats, and the lack of a plan in place. place for recently freed people. One of the first things that happened was that groups organized to intimidate people into opposing Reconstruction. One such group was the Ku Klux Klan who went around anonymously committing acts of atrocities against those who supported Reconstruction and equal rights for the African Americas. Document 2 proves that they were totally against it; he states that their goal was to “establish a core around which “the supporters of the last rebellion could rally in complete safety.” This just shows that they would not accept Southern reform and wanted to find as many supporters as possible. As is known, they threatened people at the polls to vote for groups that supported their views, which influenced the elections. Document 4 is further evidence of the refusal of some to accept Reconstruction. “Let white leagues be formed in every city...it is time to meet brute force with brute force...it is time for us to organize. » These groups terrorized people and made them afraid to show their... middle of paper... and not provide them with anything. This would prove to be a major blow to their future and to the equal rights they needed. With the combination of the above, freedmen were stripped of many basic rights. They couldn't vote, were mercilessly killed and exploited and many other terrible things. White Southern Democrats took advantage of their overwhelming power in Congress and failed to pass rights to protect freedmen; groups such as the KKK and the White Leagues intimidated and killed freedmen and those who supported them; and Congress had no plan for the slaves when it freed them. With all these events combined, the freedmen were far from equal rights. They were “separate but equal”. With the combination of these incidents, the result was that Congress ultimately failed in its efforts to secure equal rights for freedmen...