Question

One of DuBois' main criticisms of the Freedmen's Bureau was that:

Answer 1

The correct answer is C. It had too many responsibilities and could not carry them out together in an effective manner.

W.E.B Du Bois wrote in The Atlantic 1901 issue an article about the Freedmen’s Bureau. In the article, he explains that the Bureau was established in March 1864 and he mentioned “The second difficulty lay in perfecting the local organization of the Bureau throughout the wide field of work. (…) for a new central organization had to be fitted on a heterogeneous and confused but already existing system of relief and control of ex-slaves, and the agents available for this work must be sought for in an army still busy with war operations (…) This, after a year’s work, vigorously as it was pushed, the problem looked even more difficult to grasp and solve (…)”

Answer 2

Answer:

C. It had too many responsibilities and could not carry them out together in an effective manner.

Explanation:

The Freedmen's Bureau (officially the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands) was established by Congress in an attempt to deal with the black population that had acquired their freedom after the Civil War. The bureau had the responsibility to fulfill a great variety of tasks, including issuing food and clothing, helping the former slaves find jobs, providing education and reuniting separated families. Social historian W. E. B. DuBois believed this to be the main problem of the bureau. He believed that the bureau had too many responsibilities, which meant that it was unable to carry them out effectively.