It’s Like Deja Vu All Over Again
Dear Families,
Reconstruction in theory probably seemed great, but in practice fell wildly short of its goals. The country needed to become united again by revitalizing an economy not contingent upon unpaid labor. Black Americans, former slaves, had to be integrated into a changing society in a fair and viable way, and everyone needed to adopt new mindsets. That the 13th amendment was, in some ways, a gateway to Jim Crow Laws is a failure of both the American people and of American legislation that didn’t even begin to be corrected until 100 years later with the Civil Rights Act. In Their Eyes Were Watching God, we wanted to trace the developments possible in men’s and women’s lives with each passing year. It should be duly noted that while men seemed to be afforded more opportunities as time went on, women’s options continued to lag behind. At the very least, equality for women had now been invited to the checkerboard . . .
Yours,
Ms. Sacilotto