Black Codes was a name given to laws passed by southern governments established during the presidency of Andrew Johnson. These laws imposed severe restrictions on freedmen, such as prohibiting their right to vote, forbidding them to sit on juries, and limiting their right to testify against white men. They were also forbidden from carrying weapons in public places and working in certain occupations. - National Archives and Records Administration, http://www. archives. gov (accessed July 14, 2010) Southern states passed the codes described in this excerpt in order to - o increase the labor supply for factory jobs in the North o decrease the number of northern representatives in Congress O improve relations with the Democratic Party O limit the effects of the Reconstruction Amendments