APUSH+Super-Starzz

Rob, Stacy, and Gillian


 * APUSH Super-Starzz Reconstruction Plan**

Reconstruction is an issue of national importance and requires the support of our entire nation to succeed. To ensure the betterment of all people and expeditiously initiate the rejoining of our nation, we need, we require, the cooperation of all citizens. How are you going to get them to cooperate after a war just ended?Samantha Beatty In our Reconstruction plan, we propose to reunify the nation as quickly as possible Is quick the smartest plan? Do you really think that forcing it as fast as you can will really work?Samantha Beatty while assuring the natural rights of all citizens and helping restructure our economy in a way that best suits the nation. In establishing the rights of all people, we hope to better human relations, especially between blacks and whites, by setting each and every individual on a universal standard. Is this possible with the high levels of racism? -Sydney As a way of helping jump start our new nation’s economy, we will encourage a more industrial lifestyle What about the money? Will the North want to pay for because there is no way that the South can? Do you really want to spread those kinds of environments (i.e. sweatshops/ child labor)?Samantha Beatty Where will you get the money to start industry in the South when all the southerners are broke? -Sydney Will the south be willing to follow this more industrial lifestyle and how will you create such a society? -Katie and promote increased exports. Southerners already feel as though their way of life has been threatened. How do you suppose you force them to change their agricultural ways? - Emily P. How will you solve the problem of shortage of agricultural goods of the country when you exporting all of them to other countries? Buy them from other countries? Where to get the money for that? (Sandy) There is already a surplus of cotton in Great Britain and the price is dirt low. Are you going to somehow start a new agricultural industry? - Sydney

First, we propose that all citizens of the United States take a pledge of allegiance in order to ensure their commitment to the country. Are you counting the blacks? If yes, how can you do this when most of them are illiterate? Take forever to teach each freedmen to say the pledge before the Union can reunite (Sandy). What's to stop people from lying, making the pledge, and then keep trying to undermine the union? - Jaime This was basically already attempted and the ex confederates as good as crossed their fingers while asking Johnson for forgiveness. -Sydney Will a pledge of allegiance be enough to convince people that they are now committed to unification? -Marnie All are required to take this pledge, no matter their views previous to our nation’s war. Also, I'm pretty sure **forcing** people to pledge something is unconstitutional. Forcing people to agree with the Union is only going to make them want to disobey more. -Sydney Weren't they already committed before they seceded? Didn't they sign the constitution and deceleration of independence what will make them listen to their commitment now when they didn't listen to their first commitment? Samantha Beatty I agree with Sydney. Forcing views on people will not alleviate bitter feelings. And how will you know that everyone is staying true to the pledge? --Christina Those who take this pledge and do not refute the new ideals and standards set forth by our plan may continue on in peace. On the other hand, ex-confederates who propose a problem and are found guilty before the court will immediately be taken to jail How many people in the south will really honor their commitment I don't think that m,any will so how will youo regulate the majority which won't honor their commitment? How long will their sentence be? Will they be sentenced to years in prison? Death? A fine?Samantha Beatty Who will be regulating this? The army? Will there be enough force to take down all the ex-confederates fighting reconstruction? -Sydney. Yes, to add to Sydney's comment, who will be regulating this? You have not mentioned whether or not a Union army will be occupying the territory to enforce your laws. If so, how will they work with ex-confederates without controversy? And if not, how will ex-confederate officials be forced to regulate and enforce your plan if they themselves are still angry at the Union? -Holly Is it really possible to know when every single person is disobeying the pledge? The only effective way to do this would be by force, and won't that create more bitter feelings and problems? -Jordan In effect, his/her land will be given to the community as grounds to be used for the creation of schools, churches, hospitals, etc. Who will teach and how will you male sure everyone is being sent to school? what if the parents hate you so much that they don't send their kids to school will you use force?Samantha Beatty What about the Black people? Do they get land? -Sydney When you mention schools, how will they be set up? Will both blacks and whites be in school together? Will black adults be educated so that they are knowledgable enough to vote and integrate jobs which they previously weren't allowed to hold? Who will be the teachers? Ex-confederate or Union teachers? -Holly Who will build these buildings, who will run them and pay for them and who will decide what goes where? What happens if the north won't pay and neither will the south? Might they not be both discontented over the issue of freedmen in the buildings? If you have to use military force would that not defeat the purpose of the idea and if you don't use military force the freedmen can't go into these buildings, wouldn't that defeat the whole purpose? -Katie Agree with Sydney, Holly, and Katie (Sandy). Plus, you're kind of short on funds at the moment...   At the core of our plan, we seek to create a nation that is based off the words “all men are created equal.” In this equality, there will be no toleration for discrimination or demeaning acts towards black men and women. Well then you will be not tolerating the whole south because they are not going to just change there ways over night so how are you going to maken sure that there is no discrimination? How will you stop terrorist groups like the KKK? Samantha Beatty How are you going to eradicate Southerners' view of slaver as inferior overning? How would they be satisfy to ordered around by Northerners? First their right to own slaves, now the right to think- violating laws of freedom (Sandy). How do you intend to change the mindset of an entire country. Even the Northerners were racist, they just didn't believe in slavery. Segregation was almost inevitable. ALso, how will you regulate punishment, or prove discriminating behavior. You would have to have spies at resturaunts, in the streets, as peoples neighbors so you could catch them (as good as) spitting on African Americans. -Sydney So you'll throw everyone in jail that doesn't listen? That will be more then half the country, how will you enforce that?~mariela Who will enforce this? It will take many, many years for the country to work as one, especially with such hostility -Katie  How will you guarantee that racist feelings and discrimination do not persist? Who will enforce this? How will you handle those who do not cooperate? --Christina Prisoners and ex-confederates who are in jail lose all of their property, and this land will be divided amongst the community as previously stated. We want to ensure that all humans have equal opportunity to succeed. All humans except the people in jail have the right to succeed? - Jaime As much as the Southerners need to be punished for this plan to work, they can still vote you out of office or even worse, attempt to secede again, and there aren't a lot of Northerners willing to continue battling their brethren. Only those who have pledged their allegiance, including freedmen, to the union can vote and hold office. When you let ex-confederates take office what do you do let them make STATE laws against blacks since they can't have federal laws? Do you really think it is wise to let them hold office after everything they have done? Are you going to have someon like union officers at the poll so the blacks can't be intimidated against voting ? Samantha Beatty How will ensure that the South will not use the literacy tests or any other insidious plans to prevent the blacks from voting (Sandy). You said above that everyone must pledge their obedience to the Union; therefore, anyone can hold office and vote making no difference than before the war. -Sydney This has been put in place to decrease the threat of secession After the huge war, do you really think that the highly damaged South would try to secede again? -Sydney, and by enforcing officeholders to comply with the guidelines set in the allegiance, we can ensure that they work to help and not hinder the growth of our nation. Again will they keep their promises and allegiances? How do you know? What if they don't? Samantha Beatty Just because they pledged allegiance to the flag, doesn't mean they will comply, and making them agree to the "good christian republican" standpoint, is not a democracy, so they are as good as not in office. They had different political views than the North and this would create more constipation in congress. -Sydney So soon into Reconstruction do you think Democrats and Republicans will get along? Will black people be able to vote and hold office? -Katie The pledge states: “I pledge allegiance to the Republic of the United States for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. ” To be prosperous and unified, we as a nation must be united in our core values and beliefs. Wasn't the point of a democracy to have people be able to disagree about their values and beliefs? - Jaime Are you sure this will work? They could lie and just pretend to pledge. ~mariela They would lie. You are forcing this among people and imprisoning those who will not agree.- Sydney Who gets to decide these beliefs and isn't it a little unconstitutional to force a nation to believe the same thing, no matter what? What about freedom of speech and religious tolerance? -Katie To secure everyone has equal voting rights, freedmen and men alike, union officials will supervise all voting registrations and polls; this way freedmen will have equal representation and opportunity to vote for government officials. How will you have the union everywhere at once? -Sydney Who will give them this power and make sure it's enforced? Wouldn't this just inspire groups like the KKK to an even greater extent? -Katie So you're proposing heavy (and expensive) military implementation as well as an entire social and economic revolution in the South?

In order to restore the economy, we propose the conversion of the Southern economy into one more similar to the North, ruled by industry and factory work rather than the plantation style economy the South has previously employed. Because the Northern way is the only way? Where are we going to get our cotton and other agricultural goods if not the south? - Jaime Won't you give them time to recuperate? Are the North and South going to work well enough together for the North to teach the South? How are you getting money? Tariffs and taxes? Didn't that start the war?Samantha Beatty Wouldn't this destory the industrial economy of the North? Considering that the South has the perfect climate and soil for farms, while the North has none of that. (Sandy) Is the north expected to pay for this? The South certainly has no money. -Sydney In this manner, the North and South will become a more cohesive unit, working together to increase exports and further stimulate the national economy. Wouldn't they become competitors instead of growing closer to each other (Sandy)? The problem is, there would be almost no natural recourses from the South for the North to manufacture. The issue of finding land to produce natural goods or purchasing of them from other countries would arise. -Sydney I don't think the they South will like that very much, and having the confederate troops there would not be a good idea. How will you make sure that the Confederates won't just ban together and take over again?~MC Both Union and Confederate troops will work to help police the construction of these factories alongside citizens who are trained in doing so. Well they wouldn't really be "Confederate Troops". Anyways, I highly doubt any soldier who was loyal to the South would aid Reconstruction or the Northerners, lest they be "scalawags". To also help stimulate the economy, the government will employ anybody who is able to assist in the construction of the factories in the South. This way, we are able to advance our progress while helping Southerners become more adept to an industrial lifestyle. What Confederates would follow this? Where would the money to pay for the workers come from? -Katie With these new standards in place, we hope to help reunify the nation as quickly and smoothly as possible. I wish, but you can't change a bias that's been pounded into the brain for hundreds of years, no matter what you do. Heavy military control cannot control thought. Even today there is a schism, or at least, and observable separation between North and South. There's still racism prevalent on both sides, and even covert revival KKK groups still exist today. If you don't believe me, you can type "kkk.com". They sell t-shirts and ceramic KKK statues for heaven's sake! To ensure the betterment of all people and expeditiously initiate the rejoining of our nation, we need, we require, the cooperation of all citizens. Will all citizens cooperate? Everyone has different opinions and you cannot force them to do anything. Is this realistic? -Jordan In our Reconstruction plan, will assure the natural rights of all citizens and help restructure our economy in a way that best suits the nation. In establishing the rights of all people, we hope to better human relations by forcing people to get along? -Sydney by setting each and every individual on a universal standard. In these ways, we will restore this wonderful nation and help put it back on course for success. When you say natural rights, what rights specifically are you talking about? And how do you plan on actually enforcing this universal standard? -Marnie Why not ease into things rather than rushing? Samantha Beatty

Now that I'm done fulfilling the required amount of harsh criticism, I'd like to say some nice things: I think it's chivalrous that you guys wanted to solve everything: Southern racism AND southern recovery. I like that you focused your efforts and brought everything back to the ubiquitous natural rights, making sure everyone had the right to vote and had their fair share of freedom. I like that you insured that the Confederates had trials before being sent to jail, and gave surrendered lands to better causes. However, you didn't totally punish the South, even giving a plan to help rebuild their economy and their land! Though slightly unrealistic (but in this project, what isn't?) this was a noble and respectable plan. -Emily Park.