Which political faction dominated Congress during Reconstruction and advocated for civil rights for African Americans?

• A. Poll Tax
• B. Radical Republicans
• C. Grandfather Clause
• D. Black Codes

Answer: (B)

The main idea here is identifying the group in Congress during Reconstruction that pushed for civil rights for African Americans. The Radical Republicans fit that description. They were a faction within the Republican Party that believed the federal government should actively enforce rights for newly freed people. They pushed through and supported landmark measures like the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, and the Reconstruction Acts, all aimed at guaranteeing legal equality and protecting voting rights in the South. They also fought to prevent former Confederates from regaining power and to reshape Southern governments to protect African Americans.

The other terms describe policies or groups tied to restricting rights rather than promoting them. A poll tax was a fee used to disenfranchise voters; the Grandfather Clause created barriers to voting based on ancestry; and Black Codes were laws designed to limit the freedoms of African Americans after the Civil War. None of these are a faction within Congress advocating for civil rights.