Much changed during the Reconstruction period and when slaves became free. Former slaves needed employment to support themselves and their families. Sharecropping and tenancy were the answer to the latest problems. Sharecropping and tenancy had both negative and positive points, but everyone had their own opinion on this solution. Whites had strong opinions about whether freed African Americans could obtain their own land. Sharecropping and tenancy constituted a better societal solution for the moment. This solution helped the two former slaves, but ultimately the former slaves wanted their own land. Whites and former slaves had their opinions on why they didn't care about sharecropping or renting. In the sharecropping structure, landowners share their land among each worker, while giving them seeds and tools. Former slaves would have to return a portion of their profits to landowners, meaning they would not be able to keep all the money made from crops to support themselves and their families. In the tenancy structure, former slaves rented land for money from landowners. In tenancy, former slaves could rent land, but they had to find the money to pay the rent. In both sharecropping and renting, former slaves still felt like slaves, the only difference being that landowners did not have as much control over them. Now that whites no longer “owned” slaves, they had to pay laborers to harvest their crops, which they had difficulty doing. Besides the disadvantages of sharecropping and tenancy, there were some positive aspects. Freed African Americans would have difficulty finding employment, but landowners needed help harvesting their crops because they no longer had their slaves to do so. Sharecropping gave freed African Americans a chance to find employment and earn their dues until they could find another that would help them support themselves. In farming, former slaves could afford their own tools because they could keep all their crops. They owned their own land which they rented from a landowner and could use until they failed to pay the rent. Landowners view sharecropping and tenancy in a positive light, as they earn money by renting out their land or harvesting their crops. Eventually, freed African Americans wanted their own land and believed they deserved it..