Being seen as less than human meant they didn’t qualify for human rights and could be treated as such. The Dawes act was passed in 1887 meant to encourage adoption of white culture among Indians. They broke up tribal holdings into small farms for Indian families, with a reminder sold to white purchasers. They were forced to move to reservations. Destroying the constant move to follow the buffalo heard, a big part of Native American culture. Reservations were confining pieces of land that no one wanted, set aside for Native Americans. The whites were determined to break their way of life. They were trying to brain wash the children and if they didn’t listen they were beaten and denied food. Native Americans didn’t experience freedom in America.
Meanwhile in the south 1877, “redeemers” had a plan to undo the changes during the reconstruction. They slashed state budgets, reduced taxes, and closed hospitals and asylums. New public systems suffered as well, in Louisiana they spent so little on education the percentage of children unable to read and write rose dramatically. Prison populations rose, the redeemers jumped at this opportunity for cheap involuntary labor. At this time blacks and whites were equally …show more content…
Nevertheless, in 1896 the court case Plessy v. Ferguson proved to the courts to allow state laws requiring separate facilities for African American’s and whites. Segregation violated the fourteenth amendment of equal protection before the law. There was racial segregation in; schools, railroad cars, hospitals, waiting rooms, hotels, and cemeteries. African American’s couldn’t raise their voices in the presence of white people. Some states didn’t allow taxi drivers to transport one the one race at one