In this activity, students engage with primary source materials that describe and illustrate the terror tactics used by the Ku Klux Klan and other White supremacist groups to oppress the freedpeople. These materials are likely to be disturbing or distressing to many students, and need to be handled with sensitivity. See the “Teacher Tips” section above for guidelines on addressing disturbing content.

Before sharing the primary sources with students, explain that you will be sharing sources that depict and/or describe the terror tactics that were targeted at African Americans during Reconstruction. Give students the option of disengaging with the materials, if necessary. Throughout the activity, check in with students about their emotional reactions.

Students should examine the “I Am Committee” broadside and the “Excerpts from Testimony taken by the Joint Select Committee to Inquire into the Condition of Affairs in the Late Insurrectionary States.” (Note: Before reading this document, it would be helpful to review the definition of Radical Republican with students and share with them that in this source, “radical” refers to Radical Republicans.)

Bring the class together to discuss the following questions:

• List the activities Black people were warned against in the “I Am Committee” broadside, and then list the warnings to White people. How do they differ?  How are they the same?
• What tactics were used to oppress African Americans? How could these tactics limit economic opportunities for African Americans? 
• What emotions did the sources evoke in you? How would you “talk back” or respond to the author if you could?

(Optional) Invite students to respond to the terror tactics described in the “I am Committee” broadside and/or the Ku Klux Klan investigation in writing or art. Students may choose to “talk back” to the perpetrators through drawing, writing a poem, journaling, preparing a short speech, etc.