Reconstructing Democracy

Grassroots Black Politics in the Deep South after the Civil War

Nonfiction, History, Americas, United States, 19th Century
Cover of the book Reconstructing Democracy by Justin Behrend, University of Georgia Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Justin Behrend ISBN: 9780820347851
Publisher: University of Georgia Press Publication: January 15, 2015
Imprint: University of Georgia Press Language: English
Author: Justin Behrend
ISBN: 9780820347851
Publisher: University of Georgia Press
Publication: January 15, 2015
Imprint: University of Georgia Press
Language: English

Former slaves, with no prior experience in electoral politics and with few economic resources or little significant social standing, created a sweeping political movement that transformed the South after the Civil War. Within a few short years after emancipation, not only were black men voting but they had elected thousands of ex-slaves to political offices. Historians have long noted the role of African American slaves in the fight for their emancipation and their many efforts to secure their freedom and citizenship, yet they have given surprisingly little attention to the system of governance that freedpeople helped to fashion. Justin Behrend argues that freedpeople created a new democracy in the Reconstruction era, replacing the oligarchic rule of slaveholders and Confederates with a grassroots democracy.

Reconstructing Democracy tells this story through the experiences of ordinary people who lived in the Natchez District, a region of the Deep South where black political mobilization was very successful. Behrend shows how freedpeople set up a political system rooted in egalitarian values wherein local communities rather than powerful individuals held power and ordinary people exercised unprecedented influence in governance. In so doing, he invites us to reconsider not only our understanding of Reconstruction but also the nature and origins of democracy more broadly.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Former slaves, with no prior experience in electoral politics and with few economic resources or little significant social standing, created a sweeping political movement that transformed the South after the Civil War. Within a few short years after emancipation, not only were black men voting but they had elected thousands of ex-slaves to political offices. Historians have long noted the role of African American slaves in the fight for their emancipation and their many efforts to secure their freedom and citizenship, yet they have given surprisingly little attention to the system of governance that freedpeople helped to fashion. Justin Behrend argues that freedpeople created a new democracy in the Reconstruction era, replacing the oligarchic rule of slaveholders and Confederates with a grassroots democracy.

Reconstructing Democracy tells this story through the experiences of ordinary people who lived in the Natchez District, a region of the Deep South where black political mobilization was very successful. Behrend shows how freedpeople set up a political system rooted in egalitarian values wherein local communities rather than powerful individuals held power and ordinary people exercised unprecedented influence in governance. In so doing, he invites us to reconsider not only our understanding of Reconstruction but also the nature and origins of democracy more broadly.

More books from University of Georgia Press

Cover of the book Elbert Parr Tuttle by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Homicide Justified by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Blood, Bone, and Marrow by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book A People's War on Poverty by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Empowering Words by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book To Live an Antislavery Life by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Curled in the Bed of Love by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book My American Night by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Learning from Thoreau by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book A Sense of Regard by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Cornbread Nation 7 by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book What We Do with the Wreckage by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book Moses, Jesus, and the Trickster in the Evangelical South by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book The Riots by Justin Behrend
Cover of the book South Carolina Women by Justin Behrend
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy