Anyone Watching the PBS Shows on "Reconstruction"?

[On the Road]

"Reconstruction: The Second Civil War: Revolution" Episode #1602.
Congress imposes military rule in the South after the Civil War in response to whites' resistance to former slaves' establishing communities, churches and schools.

"Reconstruction: The Second Civil War: Retreat" Episode #1603.
Reconstruction after the Civil War lays the groundwork for the civil-rights movement of the 1950s and '60s.

The portion of the first show I saw was fantastic. The second is just beginning.

What I hadn't realized was how far Andrew Johnson and, to a lesser extent Grant, was willing to concede to former slaveholders. In order to maintain cotton production, former slaves were virtually forced back into working into the cotton fields by various legal means. Emapancipation became a farce. Blacks were returned to slavery in everthing but name before a wave of actions by Congress.

It was only a grass-roots movement in the North that gave the radical Republicans the ability to pass the 15th amendment and other measures meant to give teeth to emancipation.

There's way too much to go into. Here's a link where you can watch the video:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/reconstruction/players/p2_14_tr_qry.html

The second episode seems to deal largely with Southern resistance and racial terror. Amazing stuff. PBS is still a gem.