Which legislation aimed to grant rights to freed slaves following the Civil War?

The Reconstruction Amendments are significant pieces of legislation aimed specifically at establishing rights for freed slaves in the aftermath of the Civil War. This set of amendments includes the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery; the Fourteenth Amendment, which granted citizenship and equal protection under the law to all persons born or naturalized in the United States; and the Fifteenth Amendment, which aimed to secure voting rights for African American men by prohibiting the denial of the right to vote based on race or color.

These amendments were crucial in laying the foundation for civil rights in America, addressing the inequities that were entrenched during the era of slavery and ensuring that former slaves were recognized as full citizens with legal protections and rights in society. The amendments collectively represented a transformative period in American history focused on integrating freed slaves into the social and political fabric of the nation.

In contrast, while the Civil Rights Act addressed various forms of discrimination in broader contexts, it was enacted later in 1964 and specifically focused on ending segregation and discrimination rather than rights granted immediately after the Civil War. Similarly, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 targeted discriminatory practices that prevented African Americans from voting but occurred well after the Reconstruction Amendments. The Homestead Act facilitated land ownership but was not