During the reconstruction period after the civil war was resolved, there was still turmoil in the south. Many white southerners were unwilling to accept the new government for reasons such as rise in taxes to improve the construction of railroads and schools but the chief reason of discontent in the south is that the southerners could not tolerate the civil rights act of 1866 which allowed males to vote despite their previous background. In response to the civil rights act of 1866, white southerners who opposed the ideas of the new government formed a secret organization known as the Ku Klux Klan. The main goal of the Ku Klux Klan was to prevent blacks from voting by harassing the blacks in their community and often time’s murdering them in order to cause a scare.

            In order to counter the actions of the Ku Klux Klan, the Civil Rights act of 1871 was enacted by President Ulysses Grant. With this act in power, federal troops were sent to the south to protect blacks from being harassed or assaulted by secret organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan. During this time many members of the Ku Klux Klan were arrested and were put on trial for the atrocities they have committed.