Changes In US Society After Civil War - Free Essay Example

America has compressed the probabilities and continued as a multiracial and multicultural, and become the most powerful nation in the world. Diversity is a treasure of this country and unity is the countrys strength. The United States of America has a long and brief history of its independence. The economic development helped the country to become a leading nation in the world. Modern U.S society is the result of achievement from the Civil War and the laws and the amendments are the results of some hardiness the country had suffered in the past. In this paper, I will explain five major topics that we have covered in the class to describe how US society changed and how the lives of individual people were altered. 1.Reconstruction: The Reconstruction Era was the years after the Civil War. It was the era to rebuild the lesions that were imposed on the Nation. However, these years were very turbulent. President Lincoln was assassinated, and President Johnson was impeached. After the Civil War, President Lincoln came up with a plan to reinstate the Union back to how it was. This plan was very empathetic on the South and after his assassination, Johnson also followed this plan. One of the requirements for the Confederate states to come back to the Union was to endorse the Thirteenth Amendment, marking the end of slavery. Although free, Reconstruction did not do much about the racial inequality present. The voting rights for freedman was refused by Johnson, showing this inequality early on. At the end of Reconstruction, Southern states began to announce unfair laws, such as the Jim Crow Laws, that caged these now free men in the South. White supremacist groups, like the Ku Klux Klan, also formed to scare these free men into being controlled. President Lincoln was on the path of doing an excellent job with his Ten Percent Plan. Finally, the slaves were free but once they free there were rules put in place such as the Black Codes and Jim Crow Laws. They did this by killings and hangings of those that supported racial equality. This racial inequality was seen in segregation for almost a century until the civil rights movement began leading to racial equality. Today, The United States of America is a racial free country. Barack Obama became the first black president of the United States because of the American people turned their backs on a past of slavery and segregation and elected the first African-American to the US presidency. 2. Industrialization: The Industrial Revolution had finally started in the late 18th century leading to the early 19th century, in the US which permitted for the foundation of many different types of opportunities. While there were a few overall negative impacts on different categories of people such as immigrants, the rise in both wealth, technology, and job opportunities had increased for the common man. The invention of types of technology helped the factories to start producing smaller and replaceable parts for larger products and created both more jobs that helped to increase the value of certain things within society. The major influence in the industrial revolution was the usage of Lowell Mills which allowed for people of all ages, gender, and race to work which would increase the amount of wealth in each family household, and these jobs did come with negative impacts such as long hours, dangerous environments, and low pay but it eventually benefited the people of the U.S. Industrialization introdu ced to a New Society. The Industrial Revolution perceived the growth of large urban centers, such as Boston and New York City. Without industrialization modern, America would not flourish. 3. Progressivism: The United States faced several Issues after the industrialization era. The progressive movement emerged and brought many changes. They pushed many political reforms always looking to protect the wellness of the society. One of the ideals of the progressives was that they wanted democracy for a better America. The Progressive struggled against the corruption and manipulation from the big corporations and many politics. Progressive believed that the problems of the society had solutions and they wanted to improve the moral behavior of the people. They accomplished the goals by promoting reforms in the economy, politics, social wellness and moral. One of the reforms with morality was the prohibition of alcohol. This reform was supported by the Womens Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and the Anti- Saloon League. The Progressive obtained the victory over this reform in 1919 with the passage of the eighteen amendment, which prohibited the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol. Between the 1890s and 1920s. The Progressive movement aimed at spreading many different types of new social and political ideas that included things such as a better work environment and basic human living conditions. President Roosevelt also set up workmans compensation, which is a payment that employers had to pay employees who get injured on the job. President Wilson helped the economy by establishing a Federal Reserve Bank. Modern America is still benefiting from the Progressivism. 4. Jazz Age: The 1920s was a decade of success with a great change in both socially and culturally. The increase of financial stability in the 1920s allowed many Americans to be able to spend more on entertainment such as movies and music. Entertainment and movies became a large part of American culture. New styles of music and dance helped to push social norm, especially for the young generation. A long-term rebellious action finally ended in the 1920s and the US acquired the Nineteenth Amendment in the Constitution and females achieved their rights to vote. The Jazz Era was noticeable less by relaxation and consumption than by creativity and motivation. The alteration from print-based broadcasting to electronic media began in the 1920s. The opposition between newspapers and radio was minimal, as the latter was not so far, an active news medium. In 1920s Radios were first promoted for household usage. The United States converted to a consumer society in the 1920s. Modern advertising acquired ori gin in the 1920s when advertising agencies started to take shape. The consumer of modern US society still depends on advertising that started in the Jazz Age. 5.New Deal: The New Deal programs enhanced the life of numerous people over providing works for the unemployed, lawful guard for labor unions and non-unionized industrial workers, existing salaries for the working poor, current services for rustic America, and price constancy for farmers. The New Deal changed the relationship between the government and the nation. The New Deal has constructed everywhere the belief that the federal and state government must interfere in and regulator the economy and reliably funding the people in need. Numeral social assistance plans that are today in the United States have a footprint of gift to the New Deal era. Unemployment insurance, old age pensions, support for the disabled, farm subsidies, support for children in the poorest families, subsidized public housing, all were the programs under the New Deal plans which were designed to support the needs of the over-all people with numerous entitlement necessities. The most prominent social aid program known as S ocial Security System was initially recognized by the New Deal legislation. Modern US society is enjoying the benefits from every reform that included in the New Deal.