Black Codes passed in Southern states
24 Nov 1865
Causes: Southern state legislatures began passing Black Codes to restrict the rights of newly freed African-Americans.
People: President Johnson, Southern governments, freed blacks
Effects: Black Codes forbade blacks from from renting/buying land, forcing them into contract-labor systems ("a new form of slavery"), and forbade them from testifying against whites in court. Republicans in the North were angry at Johnson for allowing this to happen and refused to seat ex-Confederate representatives.