Reconstruction: Promise vs. Reality

CASE BRIEF: The 14th and 15th Amendments promised equality — but Black Codes and sharecropping contracts told a different story on the ground.

TASK: Compare the text of Reconstruction-era amendments with Black Codes and sharecropping contracts to evaluate how much actually changed.

EVIDENCE: 14th Amendment text (equal protection clause) - A Mississippi Black Code excerpt - A sharecropping contract from the 1870s

ANALYZE: Where does the law's promise diverge most sharply from lived reality? Who had the power to enforce or ignore these laws? What forms of resistance might have been available?

BUILD A CLAIM: Evaluate the extent to which Reconstruction delivered on its promises. Use specific legal and economic evidence.

RUBRIC: Cites amendment text precisely - Explains the gap between law and practice - Considers multiple perspectives (freedpeople, planters, lawmakers)