Black Codes
The Mississippi Black Codes were presented in 1865, as the Civil War ended. Slavery had ended because of the 13th Amendment but there still wasn’t equality. These Black Codes were designed in a way that still made sure Blacks did not have rights or were free of oppression. The South still continued to mistreat Black people. Black Codes kept them in a low status, almost impossible for growth. Although slavery was over, the treatment they received was just about the same.
Law
Freed Black people were still limited by the Vagrancy Law in the Mississippi Black Codes. It became a crime to not have a job, talking to each other, and not paying taxes. The Vagrancy Law made sure there was still control over what Blacks did. There was also their Civil Rights of Freedmen that stated they could own property but they could not rent a home out of their incorporated area. They made it very difficult for Blacks to truly have power and a way to grow. According to the Mississippi Black Codes, 1865, the Penal Code section of the Black Codes stated that Blacks were not allowed to have weapons without being in the military. If Blacks had fines that they were unable to pay after some days, it could be paid by a white person who would in exchange hire you for services they needed done by them. Black Codes kept it legal to oppress Blacks in other ways that were not slavery.
Their Labor
These Black Codes forced labor onto Blacks, it was not technically slavery but it still kept them down and unable to progress after slavery. They were still being controlled and penalized for not having jobs, even though it was those same limitations that prevented them. Black Codes were unjust, they were powerless during a time that should have been full of growth and development for them. There were so many restrictions put into place, specially for them because slavery was not truly over. Making it illegal to be self-sufficient kept them in a cycle of a broken system built by white men who did not want to lose power or have equal power to a Black person.
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