Key aspects of Redemption for white Southerners included:
1. Regaining Political Power: White Southerners sought to regain control of state legislatures, governorships, and other political offices that had been held by Republicans during Reconstruction. They formed political organizations, such as the Democratic Party, and used tactics like voter intimidation and violence to suppress the African American vote and ensure white political dominance.
2. Economic Control: White Southerners aimed to regain economic power and control over the labor force, particularly in agriculture. They implemented measures such as sharecropping, debt peonage, and segregation to maintain a cheap and docile labor force and prevent African Americans from acquiring land or economic independence.
3. Social Control: Redemption also involved efforts to reassert white social dominance and maintain segregation. White Southerners passed "Black Codes" and Jim Crow laws to restrict the rights and opportunities of African Americans, such as limiting their access to education, voting, public spaces, and interracial marriage.
4. Challenging Federal Involvement: White Southerners resented the interference of the federal government in their states' affairs during Reconstruction. They sought to limit the power of the federal government and resist the enforcement of civil rights laws that protected African Americans.
The "Redemption" efforts represented a backlash against the social and political gains made by African Americans during Reconstruction. It ultimately led to the establishment of a segregated society in the South and the disenfranchisement of African Americans for decades to come.