How does Horace Mann bonds study of Alabama reconstruction reveal that the ultimate result of the civil war was to reduce the south to colonial status?

Answer 1

Horace Mann Bond's study of Alabama Reconstruction illustrates that the post-Civil War policies and practices effectively marginalized the South, reducing it to a state of dependency akin to colonial status. By examining the socio-economic conditions and political disenfranchisement faced by African Americans in Alabama, Bond argued that Reconstruction failed to empower the freed populace, instead fostering a system of sharecropping and segregation that perpetuated poverty and subjugation. This colonial-like status was characterized by external control over local governance and economic structures, ultimately hindering the South's autonomy and development.