USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -In United States history, the term scalawag (sometimes spelled scallawag or scallywag) referred to white Southerners who supported Reconstruction policies and efforts after the conclusion of the American Civil War.

Detailed explanation-2: -scalawag, after the American Civil War, a pejorative term for a white Southerner who supported the federal plan of Reconstruction or who joined with black freedmen and the so-called carpetbaggers in support of Republican Party policies.

Detailed explanation-3: -The term scalawag was originally used as far back as the 1840s to describe a farm animal of little value; it later came to refer to a worthless person. For opponents of Reconstruction, scalawags were even lower on the scale of humanity than carpetbaggers, as they were viewed as traitors to the South.

Detailed explanation-4: -Scalawags were white Southerners who supported the policies of Reconstruction. This meant that they backed the Republican Party or assisted Black freedmen and Northern newcomers. Therefore, the majority of Southerners saw them as traitors.

Detailed explanation-5: -Carpetbaggers and scalawags both supported the Republican Party. They formed a coalition with Black freedmen, who also supported Republicans. Together, the carpetbaggers, scalawags, and freedmen were able to take control of state governments across the South and institute policies favorable to their shared interests.