Revisit a revolutionary period in African American History where slavery was abolished, giving birth to a new class of freeman and opportunities, but also to a new form of slavery and disenfranchisement defined by the Jim Crow South. Each of the features below is a window into a PBS documentary or program about this revolutionary period in American History that led to the Civil Rights Movement. The features will connect you directly to the website of a PBS partner where it can be viewed in full or allow you to watch a preview directly within the collection below. Get started now, and venture back into history with PBS.
Lincoln Announces Freedom
In 1862, Lincoln promises to sign an Emancipation Proclamation on New Year's Day.
The 13th Amendment Quiz
On December 6th, 1865 the 13th Amendment was ratified and adopted into the United States Constitution, formerly abolishing slavery across the country. Test your knowledge about this important moment in history, and the events that lead up to it.
The Right to Vote & New Laws
When black men are given the right to vote, they elect hundreds of black legislators.
Separate but Equal
The crushing effects of Plessy v. Ferguson and its fictitious message of equality.
Jim Crow Laws
These segregation laws became a formal system of racial apartheid in the American South.
Visualizing the Legacy of Ethnic Cleansing in America
View a map of the lasting effects of systematic purges of African Americans in the US.
The videos and features above are from PBS documentaries and productions by American Experience, The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow, Slavery By Another Name, and Independent Lens.
More videos & resources on the Emancipation, Reconstruction & Jim Crow South:
NC’s First Black Senator , Black Issues Forum UNC-TV
