Question

question 19 of 20

during reconstruction, formerly enslaved people:

a. achieved economic independence with government help.
b. gained the right to own land and make a living from it.
c. received a large amount of compensation from their enslavers.
d. gained many political rights, such as the right to vote.

Explanation:

Analyze economic outcomes of Reconstruction

Using the Sharecropping System and Reconstruction Era knowledge points

• Economic independence was rarely achieved due to the rise of the sharecropping system, which trapped many formerly enslaved people in cycles of debt.
• Land redistribution proposals (like "forty acres and a mule") were largely abandoned, meaning most did not gain the right to own land or make a living from it.
• No monetary compensation was paid to formerly enslaved people by their former enslavers.

Analyze political outcomes of Reconstruction

Using the Fifteenth Amendment and Reconstruction Era knowledge points

• The passage of the Reconstruction Amendments (specifically the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments) granted citizenship and voting rights to African American men.
• Formerly enslaved people actively participated in politics, holding local, state, and federal offices during Radical Reconstruction.

Answer:

• A. achieved economic independence with government help.
• B. gained the right to own land and make a living from it.
• C. received a large amount of compensation from their enslavers.
• D. gained many political rights, such as the right to vote. (Correct answer)