Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was supposed to improve the status of blacks when the Civil War ended in 1865; unfortunately, as David W. Padrusch's History Channel-aired documentary clearly illustrates, the Reconstruction period essentially ushered in a "second civil war" that marked the beginnings of a bloody insurgency throughout the South, in which guerilla warfare was waged against blacks and Radical Republicans. Vice President Andrew Johnson, who took office when Lincoln died, detested the Southern plantation system, but he was also a white supremacist—in short order, thanks to Johnson, former Confederate leaders were once again occupying state and local offices and wasted no time stripping blacks of their rights. In New Orleans, mobs massacred blacks seeking the right to vote, while federal troops were ordered to stand back and do nothing. Most ominously, a secret society dubbed the Ku Klux Klan was born in Pulaski, TN, engaging in night rides terrorizing and murdering blacks and their supporters (at one point led by former Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest, the Klan's early garb was more often rough burlap sacks and animal horns than the white robes of modern times). Diplomacy was not the solution: it was only after President Ulysses S. Grant finally allowed federal troops to take a decisive role in quelling the violence that an uneasy peace returned to the South. Combining historical re-enactments and scholarly testimony to provide a vivid look back at a dark period in American history, DVD extras here include the bonus documentaries Images of the Civil War and Tales of the Gun: Guns of the Civil War. Recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)
Aftershock: Beyond the Civil War
(2006) 90 min. DVD: $24.95. The History Channel (avail. from most distributors). PPR. ISBN: 0-7670-9539-1. Volume 22, Issue 4
Aftershock: Beyond the Civil War
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: