A racist poster of the Freedmen's Bureau.
Significance:
Why was the Freedmen's Bureau so significant?
The Freedmen's Bureau aided many African Americans and impoverished whites in the Reconstruction Era, shortly after the Civil War. Had this system not been created by the Congress, it would've left many African Americans and poor Southerners to die of starvation, medical illnesses, or even due to lack of shelter. The Bureau provided all of the above including an exceptional education system for African Americans. Now African Americans were slowly moving up to the place of whites in society. The Freedmen's Bureau was ridding discrimination and enforcing equality for all members of the American society. The Freedmen's Bureau acted as a backbone to all African Americans. They weren't just left with nothing after earning freedom. It can be interpreted that the Bureau served the role of guidance in the transitional period. Without the establishment of the Bureau, African Americans would've been left with absolutely nothing. Unfortunately not everyone was in favor of the Freedmen's Bureau. The President, Andrew Jackson, himself had vetoed it twice. Soon enough, the Congress who themselves had established it for the newly freed members of its' country, terminated the Freedmen's Bureau. However before it was terminated, it had already set a benchmark of great achievements. African Americans were becoming literate, they had homes and jobs, and starvation became a rare occurrence. The poor Southerners who were left to work without the help of free African American labor didn't lose their homes, learned the ways of self employment and were able to provide their themselves with their own food. Had the Freedmen's Bureau continued, it would've made even more accomplishments in favor of the African Americans and impoverished whites in the South.
Why was the Freedmen's Bureau so significant?
The Freedmen's Bureau aided many African Americans and impoverished whites in the Reconstruction Era, shortly after the Civil War. Had this system not been created by the Congress, it would've left many African Americans and poor Southerners to die of starvation, medical illnesses, or even due to lack of shelter. The Bureau provided all of the above including an exceptional education system for African Americans. Now African Americans were slowly moving up to the place of whites in society. The Freedmen's Bureau was ridding discrimination and enforcing equality for all members of the American society. The Freedmen's Bureau acted as a backbone to all African Americans. They weren't just left with nothing after earning freedom. It can be interpreted that the Bureau served the role of guidance in the transitional period. Without the establishment of the Bureau, African Americans would've been left with absolutely nothing. Unfortunately not everyone was in favor of the Freedmen's Bureau. The President, Andrew Jackson, himself had vetoed it twice. Soon enough, the Congress who themselves had established it for the newly freed members of its' country, terminated the Freedmen's Bureau. However before it was terminated, it had already set a benchmark of great achievements. African Americans were becoming literate, they had homes and jobs, and starvation became a rare occurrence. The poor Southerners who were left to work without the help of free African American labor didn't lose their homes, learned the ways of self employment and were able to provide their themselves with their own food. Had the Freedmen's Bureau continued, it would've made even more accomplishments in favor of the African Americans and impoverished whites in the South.