Union African Americans: Their Rights, Their Roles, And Their History In The Civil War

Jeffrey Zhang Individual Website

When I started this project I knew that I wanted it to be about a war but I also wanted it to be original so I also didn't want it to be about a battle. Since the theme was revolution reaction and reform I decided to find a war that caused all these things while impacting the future greatly. I did some research and found out that African Americans soldiers were not treated the same as white soldiers in the civil war. At a time where most of the African Americans were slaves this seemed obvious. But when I learned that during the end of the war the north recognized that they should also be treated just like any other type of people because of their bravery in battle I knew this topic was for me.

I started my research by surfing the web and then found some books centered specifically on their battles but I soon learned that I could not get enough information of how their treatment was different then white soldiers so I then focused more on the way they fought for their equality. They made up the majority of my

website while I looked for some background information to help my viewers see why African Americans were recruited. I chose to present my information by using a website because I thought the information would be easier to see and understand from a viewers viewpoint. I first set up my website and planned it on a separate sheet of paper. I then started using my plan to build my website. My topic fits the theme "Revolution Reaction And Reform" in multiple ways. When the African Americans joined the war white soldiers had much more benefits then them. Black soldiers got lower wages, bad rations and equipment, and no possibilities to become a commissioned officer. During the war some white soldiers showed no respect for them by teasing them and complaining they did not want to fight alongside them. By the end of the war the war department had made the rations and wages the same as whites and issued a document which allowed them to be commissioned

officers. Most of the whites who had a few years earlier made fun of these pioneers now stayed dead silent with a new respect. How had this been done? They had proved themselves on the battlefield which caused a revolution in African American equality, a reaction of mixed responses in which African Americans celebrated and in which some white people were furious because the government had acknowledged that some blacks were equal or superior to whites.