Graphic of part of the Emancipation Proclamation
Rights and POwer: The POlitics of Reconstruction
Link to Part 1 of Section 4: Presidential Reconstruction Link to Part 2 of Section 4: Congress and Civil Rights Link to Part 3 of Section 4: The National Debate Over Reconstruction; IMpeachment; and the Election of Grant Link to Part 4 of Section 4: Reconstruction Government in the South Link to Biographies in Section 4

"The Shackle Broken By The Genius of Freedom," 1874. (Chicago Historical Society)

"The Shackle Broken By The Genius of Freedom," 1874. (Chicago Historical Society)

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A print celebrating the heroes and history of black freedom depicts the famous address by Congressman Robert B. Elliott in favor of the bill that became the Civil Rights Act of 1875.

The print also includes a portrait of the bill's author, Charles Sumner, an image of Lincoln, and an optimistic view of the future with a scene of black family captioned,

"American Slave Labour Is of the Past - Free Labour Is of the Present - We Toil for Our Children and Not for Those of Others."
Copyright 2003
he Meaning of Freedom: Black and White Responses to Slavery From Free Labor to Slave Labor Rights and Power: The Politics of Reconstruction The Ending of Reconstruction Epilogue: The Unfinished Revolution Additional Resources Credits for this Exhibit Link to return to Digital History Home Link to return to Reconstruction Home Introduction