Primary Sources
(1866) Texas Black Codes
https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/1866-texas-black-codes/
Black codes of Mississippi
https://www.facinghistory.org/reconstruction-era/mississippi-black-codes-1865
https://teachingamericanhistory.org/document/black-codes-of-mississippi/
section: “South Carolina Black Code”
https://www.crf-usa.org/brown-v-board-50th-anniversary/southern-black-codes.html
Louisiana Black Code (1865)
https://college.cengage.com/history/us/resources/students/primary/blackcode.htm
Various, “Black Codes Restrict Newly Won Freedom,”
https://shec.ashp.cuny.edu/items/show/1525.
Lessons
Fourteenth amendment discussion starter: the black codes
In this clip from FOURTEEN: A Theatrical Performance, performers share sections of the Black Codes from the Reconstruction era and the response of African Americans to the rise of these laws. African Americans used petitions, like the one in the clip from the South Carolina Colored Convention. Once you have watched the video use the discussion questions below to explore the effect of Black Codes on newly freed African Americans and the work of state Colored Conventions to ensure rights for all. https://constitutioncenter.org/media/files/14th_Amendment_Discussion_Starter_-_The_Black_Codes.pdf |