Which combination describes Reconstruction protections and their end?

• A. Freedmen's Bureau, Civil Rights Act, 14th/15th Amendments; end due to Black Codes, Ku Klux Klan, and Compromise of 1877.
• B. Freedmen's Bureau; end due to Civil Rights Act; the 13th Amendment; the creation of the Great Society.
• C. The 14th Amendment only; end due to War of 1812; nothing else.
• D. Reconstruction ended due to World War I.

Answer: (A)

Reconstruction protections were federal efforts designed to secure the rights of newly freed people, not just to end slavery. The Freedmen’s Bureau provided shelter, schooling, medical care, and legal assistance; Civil Rights Acts aimed to guarantee basic civil rights; and the 14th and 15th Amendments embedded equal protection and voting rights in the Constitution. But these protections faced strong backlash in the South. Black Codes restricted the freedoms of Black Americans; the Ku Klux Klan used violence to intimidate and disenfranchise; and the Compromise of 1877 pulled federal troops out of the South, effectively ending Reconstruction and allowing the rollback of protections to continue for decades. The other options mix in events or programs that don’t fit the Reconstruction timeline and outcomes, making this combination the best fit for describing both the protections and their end.