Johnson's Plan
By Gabby Lazare
Overview
Issues in response to Johnson's Plan:
Freedmen's Bureau
Civil Rights Act 1866
Black Codes
Black Codes from South Carolina
1. Civil Rights: this code declared that “persons of color” now had the right “to acquire, own and dispose of property; to make contracts; to enjoy the fruits of their labor; to sue and be sued; and to receive protection under the law in their persons and property.” Also, the code recognized African American marriages and families.
2. Labor Contracts: The form allowed black servants to work for white masters and required that the wages and the term of service be in writing. The contract had to be witnessed and then approved by a judge. Other provisions of the code listed the rights and obligations of the servant and master. The form required that the wages and the term of service be in writing. The contract had to be witnessed and then approved by a judge. The law protected black servants from being forced to do “unreasonable” tasks.
3. Vagrancy: this law pressured freedmen to sign labor contracts. The code provided that vagrants could be arrested and imprisoned at hard labor. The courts customarily waived such punishment for white vagrants, allowing them to take an oath of poverty instead.