"The Honoured Representative of Four Millions of Colored People"
Historian Douglas R. Egerton describes the life and political career of Mississippi politician Blanche K. Bruce, the first African American to serve a full six-year term in the United States Senate.
![Portrait of man seated in suit.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/REC_04a_Blanche_Bruce.jpg?h=b75a1373&itok=WIl27GuK)
The Honoured Representative of Four Millions of Colored People (en español)
In Spanish, historian Douglas R. Egerton describes the life and political career of Mississippi politician Blanche K. Bruce, the first African American to serve a full six-year term in the United States Senate.
![Portrait of man seated in suit.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/REC_04a_Blanche_Bruce.jpg?h=b75a1373&itok=WIl27GuK)
Mendez v. Westminster
Learn about the Mendez family's experience as Mexican Americans fighting against school segregation in Southern California during the 1940s.
![A close up of a student writing on a piece of paper.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-05/LosAngeles_ClassroomImage_2012_FH116207.jpg?h=9a556404&itok=SXiHI4Fc)
Excerpt from Mississippi Black Codes (1865)
The Mississippi Black Codes attempt to codify expectations of freedpeople around topics such as intermarriage and labor laws.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
Mississippi Black Codes (1865) (en español)
In Spanish, the Mississippi Black Codes attempt to codify expectations of freedpeople around topics such as intermarriage and labor laws.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
South Carolina "Red Shirts" Battle Plan (1876)
Read an excerpt of the battle plan developed by the “Red Shirts,” a Democratic Party paramilitary group that emerged in South Carolina in the late 19th century.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
South Carolina “Red Shirts” Battle Plan (1876) (en español)
In Spanish, read an excerpt of the battle plan developed by the “Red Shirts,” a Democratic Party paramilitary group that emerged in South Carolina in the late 19th century.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
A Teacher Describes Violence and Intimidation (1875)
J. L. Edmonds, an African American schoolteacher, gave this account of the murder and intimidation before the 1875 election in Clay County, Mississippi.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
A Teacher Describes Violence and Intimidation (1875) (en español)
In Spanish, J. L. Edmonds, an African American schoolteacher, gave this account of the murder and intimidation before the 1875 election in Clay County, Mississippi.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
The Importance of Getting History Right
Historian James Grossman describes the importance of establishing an accurate history of Reconstruction.
![A drawing of the first Black 7 senators and representatives in the 41st and 42nd Congress of the United States.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/First_colored_senator_and_reps.jpg?h=a7421b6e&itok=EPFRKxDN)
The Influence of "The Birth of a Nation"
The three-hour silent film The Birth of a Nation did “incalculable harm” to Black Americans by creating a justification for prejudice, racism, and discrimination for decades to follow.
![Member of Ku Klux Klan holding a torch on a horse.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/REC_12_The_Birth.jpg?h=da7ce804&itok=o8NJxzoX)