The toughest reconstruction plan was by the Radical Republican Plan, they defended the protection and the defense of African Americans. The Radical Republicans won the elections of 1866 and made possible to begin the Radical Reconstruction.
The Reconstruction began by dividing the territory into military districts governed by a Union general, Martial Law was declared and troops were dispatched to protect formers slaves. The southern states had to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment and provide suffrage to African Americans.
In a democracy the government has less control over how people spend their time and what they believe. People are free to join clubs, political parties and other groups. In a dictatorship there's just one leader who has total control over the party and the country.
