ATL+Aliens

Andrew B., Thomas, Kayla



Reconstruction Proposal Thomas Coleman, Andrew Ballantine and Kayla Bristol

The time period that followed America’s bloodiest war, the Civil War, was known as the Reconstruction. There was no primary goal for reconstruction; however, there was an array of goals that were equally important such as punishment, and civil rights but one was more important than the others. Reunification was the main goal of reconstruction and required that people made sacrifices for the good of what was to become //United// States of America.

We, as members of the Union, believe that the primary goal of Reconstruction is reunification. In order to do this, we need to put the past behind us, but not completely forget about what has happened, and come together as human beings, brothers, and as a nation. That sounds like you contradicted yourself and just said join as brothers to make it sound good. While it might be incredibly difficult to accept our brothers in the South, in order to ensure our reunification, this is //exactly// what needs to happen. Of course, not every confederate can be pardoned of his war crimes and this is where a few restrictions come in. All non-officer soldiers who swear loyalty to the union will be accepted into the union and given jobs. They will be allowed to own land only if they can afford to buy it. (how will they have the money to buy it if they've been working in the army and their farm at home was destroyed by sherman) Also, they will not be allowed to own any “hidden” guns, and all guns have to be registered with a specific purpose and must be shown to a state inspector if asked. (How will you know if they do hide guns?) Now, this is a different story for the officers. All low ranking officers will be given jobs after they spend the first year helping to clean up the damages that the south made during the war. They will not be allowed to own any guns, or land. **(Where will these low ranking officers live if they cannot own land? Will they be able to rent land? Will this not only create hard feelings and more hatred towards the North, if officers cannot own land?)** How will former officers live (pay for food or any staple for that matter) in the year between the beginning of reconstruction and when they are given jobs? They won' have nay money until that year is up and will starve quickly. All high-ranking officers will be hung for their war crimes. (Is this too harsh, hanging high-ranking officers?) All ex confederates will also swear to not be racist against the freedmen. ( Will swearing really stop racism?)  **How does swearing makes any difference? Aren't you thinking too high of ex-confederate? Do you believe that is enough to prevent the hate crime? ** How will the South make a living if you take away their land? What jobs are there available? If they don't abide by their loyality which they sweared upon, what happens? How do you expect people to just put the past behind them? Many people lie, and if people just lie when they make their swearing against racism how does that help anyone?
 * 1) What should be done to the ex-Confederates?

**I agree that promising doesn't really ensure that they won't be racist. I think a LOT more needs to be done to make these ex-confederates not racist. And same with owning "hidden guns".... the whole point is you wouldn't know if they had them or not. And just because they register and show them to officers doesn't mean they will not use them as hate weapons.**


 * Isn't it unfair for the high ranking officers to be hung and the low ranking officers to be let free? Both have committed similar crimes and both were following orders. I feel like this would cause more hate from the South to the North. Also swearing loyalty won't do anything. Can the Union really trust the ex-confederates based off their word after they committed treason? **

How will they monitor the specific purpose of the guns and assure that they won't be used by the KKK or other terrorist groups? Won't the hanging of officers who are revered in the South cause more hatred towards the North? And will there be consequences for people who don't honor their oaths of loyalty and peace? What will happen to soldiers who don't swear loyalty?

2.What should be done for the freedmen? The freedmen shall be given a plot of land that is to be obtained by the confiscation of southern lands. The freedmen will be given all the rights that white people have had .(How will people reach when their land that they own is being given to the freedmen?) ( <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">If any person (white or black) is reported saying or doing anything racist, that person will be tried and put in jail with differing lengths of time depending on what the person did. **<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Do you believe that there are jails that can accomodate large amount of population inside of jail? Before asking that question, who is going to enforce those new laws? W ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif;"> Blacks will be allowed to go to school and become educated just as whites have been able to do so. They will also be able to hold political positions. <span style="background-color: #ff00ff; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif;">Are they going to go to the same schools as whites? If so, how are you going to get the whites to be okay with that? **<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">I think you are optimising the reactions of southerners, they aren't just going to be "okay" with it all. Maybe make a plan that intergrates over time? I think that is the only way to change people's views. ** <span style="background-color: #000000; color: #ffe600; display: block; font-family: 'lucida grande',tahoma,verdana,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; text-align: left;">Who's land is going to be given to the blacks? Do you really think Southerners are going to allow and accept going to schools with the blacks? What if the South causes chaos or conflict? And the blacks having the right to hold political positions? Whoa, isn't that a big step? They just got free? How is the South going to take that? <span style="color: #008800; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Will the South listen to black politicians? Won't the south feel oppressed if they aren't allowed to speak their mind and be racist which will lead to further conflict?
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Won't this cause even more tension between the North and the South because the freemen will be given the same rights they will? **)
 * <span style="color: #800080; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Isn't "saying" something racist going against the freedom of speech? **


 * <span style="color: #660000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">I am not OCD but where is number 3? **

4. Who should be able to vote and hold office in the new Southern state governments?

After the state fulfills the requirements explained in this proposal and the state is readmitted to the Union, the state can re-establish their governments. The people will be able to vote any man except for Confederate leaders to hold office in these new governments. Confederate leaders will not be allowed to hold office for the fear of the Confederacy leaders returning to power. <span style="background-color: #ffeb00; color: #3900ff; font-family: Georgia,serif;"> Don't you think the Southerners will be extremely angry about the fact that they can't vote into office whoever they want? What about this creating further tension? Confederate leaders are defined as any high-ranking officer in the Confederate Army and any member on Confederate government. Although it does not seem like it, this is a sacrifice that people are making for the good of reunifying the Union. (are the southerners willing to abide by these rules or will they rebel more?) <span style="background-color: #ffeb00; color: #3900ff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Why would Southerners be wiling to make this sacrifice for "the good of reunifying the Union" when they wanted to dissolve the Union in the first place? Many people believe that the North should punish the Confederates further, by attempting to completely change the culture and society of the South. (Hasn't the North already changed the South forever by making slavery illegal? How can you further change the South's culture and society when the heart of it was already nonexistent?) Instead, Confederate leaders will not be allowed to hold office, (So other Pro-Confederate citizens can make it into office? Just because they aren't leaders, doesn't mean other citizens don't have the same beliefs.) but our proposal does not attempt to change the culture and society of the South. <span style="background-color: #ff00ff; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif;">The culture and society is almost solely based off slavery!!! After a state’s population fulfills our requirements, (I see what you ware trying to say, but your requirements are a bit vague. Also elaborate more on how you will achieve this.) everyone including freedmen will be able to hold office, except for Confederate leaders and women. After the state achieve our requirements to become readmitted to the Union, any man will be allowed to vote. This includes confederate leaders and freedmen (You may want to reconsider letting Confederate leaders vote, because they have a great deal of influence. They would be able to persuade the masses who to vote for, which could lead to the same situation. Also, even if they couldn't vote, they might still present speeches to convince the masses of who to vote for. You might want to imprison the most influential Confederates, or exclue them from all political events for life.) This rule applies to all except for women. <span style="background-color: #ff00ff; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif;">Okay so let's not fix all prejudices at once? Would it not be easier to teach this moral lesson for women too? More people are okay with Southern white women then slaves, are they not? <span style="color: #008800; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">So you think the South will be okay with the option of eliminating their former leaders from office and replacing them with black people? Your proposal changes the entirety of the South's culture by freeing slaves and removing their leaders from office. Will southern citizens really believe that it is a sacrifice for the good of the Union and not a sacrifice for the good of the North? The freeing of slaves and removal/prevention of Southern politicians from taking office seems somewhat one-sided.

5. What requirements must be met before states regain full rights and representation? Our first priority of Reconstruction is reunification. We realize that this requires us to sacrifice some of our morals but we are willing to do so for the good of the nation. For the good of the nation in this proposal we are having lenient requirements to allow easy readmission to the Union. The requirements for a state to readmit to the Union with full rights and representation are 20% of the citizens of the state must pledge allegiance to the Union. <span style="color: #660000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">**No 13th, 14th, 15th amendment? Nate hendrix--> So you are going for a semilenient Abraham Lincoln style plan?** Also, all Confederate leaders must pledge allegiance as well. If a Confederate leader is proven to act against the Union in anyway after this pledge, they are viable for jail time. <span style="color: #ef2e2e; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(How much jail time will they be sentenced? Does it depend on the severity of the Confederate's actions?) After these requirements are met, states may begin to reestablish local and state governments and also elect officials (Who can be elected?) to positions. States may also elect members to the House of Representatives and Senate. We realize that this is easy to fulfill, but that is the point. We want the seceded states to readmit quickly, so we can continue rebuilding our broken nation. <span style="font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">Will there be any over site of the rebuilding of governments? <span style="color: #008800; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Didn't the South commit treason and shouldn't their readmission reflect the punishment due for such a high crime? Shouldn't their be a more sever punishment to assure that the South won't secede every time they don't get their way? This extremely low amount of punishment for the South, or lack thereof, will anger the North. What will you do when the North protests and calls for higher punishment for losing the Civil War?

6. How should the Southern economy be restored? Due to the recent loss of the war and the resulting decrease in the strength of the Southern economy, state officials should take advantage of the large agricultural system in the South. Before the war, the South benefited greatly from their many crops, specifically tobacco, cotton, and rice. Increasing production in these crops will both generate jobs in the South, and also recreate the strong, pre-war agricultural market.

<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">**The price of cotton was declining due to plantations in Egypt and India. I do not believe that farming would create the big industries as you would wish to be.** Officials are to establish a tariff on all foreign agricultural imports in order to encourage American consumers to purchase American agricultural products rather than the costly foreign goods. The tariff will result in a greater demand for less expensive and more easily obtained crops in the South, and therefore generate revenue for the currently struggling region. <span style="color: #00b5ff; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">The tariff can possible secure manufacturing, but do you think the people are going to want to be paying more for foreign product? People will buy some foreign products. Some products you cant just get at home. Are you sure that imposing a tariff is going to be both helpful while still not causing hatred among Southerners? Increased crop production will not only provide the South with a valuable export, but will also provide a solution to the current issue of unemployment. A drastic increase in crop production will require a proportional increase in workers, thereby employing many currently unemployed Southern citizens. Employment rates will rise, allowing the newly employed Southerners to purchase more goods from the Southern manufacturers, further stimulating the economy. <span style="color: #00b5ff; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">How will you tie freed slaves into your economic plan? Are you going to give them land? Jobs in cleaning cities? <span style="color: #008800; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Is the North going to accept a tariff to help the South after the South got so fussy because of a tariff that supposedly helped the North? Will the freedmen want to go back to working for their former masters? Will former masters want to pay freedmen for work that they used to do for free? How will increased crop production be put in to effect after Sherman destroyed so many plantations?

7. What role should Union troops play in policing, governing, or rebuilding the South?

Regarding the duties of Union troops of maintaining law and order in the South, officers are advised to station their troops in the cities of the South with the highest records of conflict between blacks and whites or highest records of crime in general.<span style="color: #00b5ff; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;"> But wont the placing of troops in areas of violence create even more violence? I'm sure that the presence of Union troops will only agitate the Southerners all the more, therefore having potential to cause even greater amounts of violence. Officers will command the troops to stifle any conflicts including Ku Klux Klan attacks, abusive treatment of freedmen, or any issues of the like in order to bring peace to the Southern states. <span style="color: #ef2e2e; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(Could this create an arms race and even a "mini war" between the KKK and Union Soldiers? Aren't the KKK and the South overall tenacious and say "the North might have won the war but we will win Reconstruction"? I think only more violence will come from the North trying to protect freedmen in the most dangerous KKK populated areas.) <span style="background-color: #ffeb00; color: #3900ff; font-family: Georgia,serif;">Historically, Union troops were put in the South to stop the KKK. The Union troops can't be in all places at all times. Don't you think that this isn't completely resolving the problem of the KKK as hatred and racism towards blacks will continue as it did in real life? Concerning governmental duties, Union troops should show minimal union representation when taking part in government issues as to not insult Southerners by taking away their pride and to maintain increased peace. <span style="color: #00b5ff; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">How are they NOT going to represent the Union when they themselves are part of the Union army? If they wont represent the Union, who will they be representing? Are they to represent Confederates? However, troops should show enough representation to introduce and uphold new union ideals to incorporate in the Southern society. **<span style="color: #660000; font-family: Georgia,serif;">How long would the troops stay? How long would it take to lower the tension? Don't you think that the troops themselves would create more tension? **With regards to any jobs involved with physical rebuilding of Southern structures, able Southerners should be given the foremost opportunity in receiving a job over Northerners capable of easily finding jobs in the North. **<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif;">What will happen to Northerners trying to get jobs as well? Do you think this will slowly create a separation of social classes over time, with Southerners taking Northerners' jobs away from them? ** The task of physically rebuilding will generate jobs for recently unemployed southerners, eliminating the need for assistance from union troops and allowing for higher employment rates in the south. <span style="color: #00b5ff; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">Are freedmen going to be able to be part of the effort to rebuild the South? If so, how will you prevent physical conflicts between white and black work forces? If not, how will you employ the nearly 9 million freed slaves? <span style="color: #008800; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif;">Why won't the Union soldiers be allowed to voice their opinions in the voting? Are they relinquishing their right to vote because they are being sent to the South to be involved in more conflict that they don't necessarily want to be a part of? Shouldn't freedmen have priority to work due to their lack of knowledge for use in other lines of work?

The primary goal of Reconstruction was reunification. This required the support of everyone (northerners and southerners) in order to sow the country back together. It also required that people become less self-centered for the good of the country. (Does the South even care about becoming selfless right after the war? Does it even care about reunification with the North? Didn't they secede to carry on their own ways of life: agriculture and slavery? Is it possible for them to put the war behind them and move on for the better of the country? How many years will it be before whites are okay with interracial marriage between blacks and whites? How many years will it be before a black man can have a friendly conversation with a white man in a restaurant? How many years will it be before blacks and whites can go to school together?) Even though Reunification was the most important goal of the Reconstruction, there were also many other goals that were as important as each other in acquiring a functioning, united country. <span style="color: #00b5ff; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;">You want reunification yet you are advocating a sizable occupation of the South? Isn't that too contradictory? How will you be able to reunify both sides when you will cause anger from one side (the South)?

6. How should the Southern economy be restored?

Due to the recent loss of the war and the resulting decrease in the strength of the Southern economy, state officials should take advantage of the large agricultural system in the South.  What about Sherman's raid? What about the destruction of Atlanta and all of the other cities in ruins? Much of the south's farmland was burned as well. Before the war, the South benefited greatly from their many crops, specifically tobacco, cotton, and rice. Increasing production in these crops will both generate jobs in the South, and also recreate the strong, pre-war agricultural market. Other countries began producing these items during the Civil War so they wouldn't have to rely on America. So would increasing production really have the desired effect? Would people really want to take the jobs previously filled by slaves? With the heavy amounts o racism circulating at the time, or would it be to give freedmen jobs? With their previous masters?- Nate Hendrix!!!

** The price of cotton was declining due to plantations in Egypt and India. I do not believe that farming would create the big industries as you would wish to be. ** Officials are to establish a tariff on all foreign agricultural imports in order to encourage American consumers to purchase American agricultural products rather than the costly foreign goods.  Will the North be keen on helping the South get back on its feet? If so, how? The tariff will result in a greater demand for less expensive and more easily obtained crops in the South, and therefore generate revenue for the currently struggling region. Increased crop production will not only provide the South with a valuable export, but will also provide a solution to the current issue of unemployment. A drastic increase in crop production will require a proportional increase in workers, thereby employing many currently unemployed Southern citizens.  What about the newly freed slaves? They have the right to be employed just as much as the southerners. How are the freed slaves expected to even find work? With the competing white that have had more education, how will the newly freed slaves find jobs? And if they can't find work then wouldn't the social structure of white supremacy surface again? <span style="background-color: #ff00ff; color: #000000; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif;">I realize I am being the devil's advocate of my fellow Californian; however, how do you propose you will get these hating Southerners work beside their former slaves that are now getting the same amount of money as them? Or do you suggest that they have harsher working environments or less pay? Or "separate but equal"?....WHICH IS A TOTAL LIE! Employment rates will rise, allowing the newly employed Southerners to purchase more goods from the Southern manufacturers, further stimulating the economy. the the the