The <em>redeemers</em> were a political coalition in the Southern states during the Reconstruction Era after the Civil War. During this time, the south was occupied by federal forces, and their governments dominated by Republicans, who tried to guarantee the new civil rights obtained by black people. This was very unpopular for Southerners, who refused to lose their power to black people. So they employed violent measures to prevent them from participating in politics, attacking them and other republicans. The most infamous example of these paramilitary organizations is the Ku Klux Klan, other less known are the White League in Louisiana and the Red Shirts in Mississippi and North Carolina.
So, the strategy they used is violence and threats to undermine the Republican vote. They finally succeeded with the Compromise of 1877, when Hayes became president with the votes of the south in exchange for favors to them, such as the removal of federal forces. This led to the end of the Reconstruction.
