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CONCLUSION
The 13th amendment gave freedom to former slaves and along with the 14th and 15th amendments, gave former slaves equal rights and the right to vote in the United States. However, despite these amendments, inequality and injustice remained for the African Americans. The Freedmen's Act created the Freedmen's Bureau which gave assistance and aid to freedmen, but it only existed for seven years and did not have all the resources needed to truly help all the former slaves achieve equality, justice and integration in American society. Plessy v. Ferguson went even further and actually hurt the cause for integration and justice because the Supreme Court ruled that segregation was constitutional as long as equal, but separate accommodations could be provided. In reality, equal opportunities and accommodations were never given to African Americans under the segregation laws, so Plessy v. Ferguson was a major setback for African Americans quest for equality and justice.