Family ties between freed slaves were so strong, after the obtained their freedom they went out in search of family members they had lost. Many were unsuccessful but it showed their determination. Their freedom meant they no longer had to take orders from anyone else. This was a time to rebuild their lives, raise families, learn to read and write. They even formed their own churches, which soon became the foundation for the African American community.
Difficulty came with freedom however. Many whites refused to hire those who used to be slaves but lent them seeds and land to “help” start their lives, in the hopes of getting a share of their cops as payment but this only led African Americans in this situation into a deep debt. Those who could be self sufficient still had the terrorism of the Ku Klux Klan to watch out for. Women worked in field besides their men simply to help provide for their families and in hopes of giving their children a better life.
Life was hard on immigrants as well. Immigrant women were used to hard work back in their homelands, but America was a whole new environment for them. The cities were crowed and noisy and many families lived in boarding houses just so they could afford a place to live. Foreign women did whatever they could to benefit their families, this included carrying buckets of water and heavy laundry up several flights of stairs.
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