Malcolm Rivera
The Civil Rights Act of 1875, which aimed to protect the rights of African Americans, was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1883. The Act, which became law on March 1, 1875, prohibited discrimination in public accommodations, such as hotels, trains, and schools, on the basis of race. However, the Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment granted Congress the power to regulate states' behaviour, not individuals, and that the Act was not authorized by the Thirteenth or Fourteenth Amendments. This decision set a precedent for the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ruling, which upheld the constitutionality of separate but equal facilities for blacks and whites.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year | 1875 |
| Date | March 1 |
| Type of Act | Civil Rights Act |
| Purpose | To protect all citizens in their civil and legal rights |
| Amendments | Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth |
| Prohibited | Racial discrimination in juries, schools, transportation, and public accommodations |
| Required | Equal enjoyment of accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theaters, and other places of public amusement |
| Protection | Against denial of accommodations or services on the basis of colour, race, or “previous condition of servitude” |
| Court Decision | Declared unconstitutional in 1883 |
| Reasoning | Fourteenth Amendment granted Congress the right to regulate the behaviour of states, not individuals |
| Court Ruling | 8-1 |
| Impact | Failed to have a lasting effect, foreshadowed the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson decision |
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What You'll Learn
The Supreme Court's ruling
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 was a bill introduced by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts in 1870. The bill aimed to protect the civil and legal rights of all citizens and outlaw racial discrimination in juries, schools, transportation, and public accommodations. The Act was signed into law on March 1, 1875, by President Ulysses S. Grant, who also signed the Enforcement Acts into law.
However, the Supreme Court declared the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional on October 15, 1883, in a consolidated case known as the Civil Rights Cases. The Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment granted Congress the authority to regulate the behaviour of states rather than individuals. The Court's decision meant that neither the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery, nor the Fourteenth Amendment, which guaranteed equal protection of the laws to African Americans, was violated by the existence of uncodified racial discrimination. In other words, the Constitution did not extend to private businesses, and therefore, Congress lacked the constitutional right to define the composition of juries selected for state courts.
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 was a significant effort to protect the rights of African Americans and ensure equal treatment under the law. However, the Supreme Court's ruling in 1883 struck down the Act, reflecting the challenges and limitations of the post-Reconstruction era in fully realising racial equality and civil rights for all citizens.
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The 13th and 14th Amendments
The 13th Amendment, passed by Congress before the Civil War had ended, outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. After the war, Southern whites passed "Black Codes" to restrict the rights of freed slaves, and so Congress responded with the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the 14th Amendment, which granted citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the US and required equal protection under the law.
The 14th Amendment, adopted in 1868, was designed to ensure equal rights for African Americans. It states that no state shall make or enforce any law that abridges the privileges or immunities of US citizens, and that no state shall deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process. It also grants Congress the power to enforce these rights through legislation.
In 1875, Congress passed a Civil Rights Act that aimed to enforce the 13th and 14th Amendments by prohibiting racial discrimination in public accommodations, such as hotels, trains, and schools. However, this act was later declared unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court in 1883. The Court ruled that the 14th Amendment only granted Congress the power to regulate the behaviour of states, not individuals, and that the Constitution did not extend to private businesses.
Despite the ruling on the Civil Rights Act of 1875, the 13th and 14th Amendments remain important foundations for civil rights legislation and the protection of equal rights in the United States. The 13th Amendment abolished slavery, and the 14th Amendment guaranteed legal equality and citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the country. These amendments, along with the 15th Amendment, which prohibits denying the right to vote based on race, are known as the Reconstruction Amendments, as they were passed in the post-Civil War era to extend civil rights to freed slaves and their descendants.
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The role of Congress
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 was a piece of legislation that aimed to protect the rights of African Americans, who at the time were facing widespread racial discrimination and violence, particularly in the South. The Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1875.
Congress played a crucial role in the creation and passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1875. The bill was first introduced in 1870 by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, a prominent advocate for black civil rights. Sumner's original bill sought to outlaw racial discrimination in juries, schools, transportation, and public accommodations. However, it faced strong opposition and heated debates in the Senate, with lawmakers disagreeing on the extent of the federal government's power in enforcing civil rights.
One of the most contentious issues was the prohibition of segregation in public schools. Ultimately, supporters of the bill were forced to drop this provision to ensure its passage. Another point of debate was whether Congress had the constitutional right to define the composition of juries for state courts. Despite these challenges, the bill gained support from several African American representatives, who shared their personal experiences of discrimination.
The Enforcement Acts of 1870 and 1871, also passed by Congress, were an important precursor to the Civil Rights Act of 1875. These acts were designed to enforce the Fourteenth Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1866, and to counteract the violence and intimidation faced by African Americans, particularly during elections. The Second Force Act of 1871 placed the administration of national elections under federal control, while the Third Force Act of 1871 empowered the president to use the armed forces to combat conspiracies against equal protection of the laws.
While the Civil Rights Act of 1875 represented a significant effort by Congress to address racial discrimination, it ultimately fell short of its goals. In 1883, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Act was unconstitutional, finding that it was not authorized by the Thirteenth or Fourteenth Amendments. The Court's decision effectively undermined the Act's protections and set a precedent for separate but equal facilities for blacks and whites, which was later upheld in the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson case.
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Public opinion
The Act was introduced by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts in 1870 as an amendment to a general amnesty bill for former Confederates. Sumner, a dominant Radical Republican in the Senate, died in 1874 before the bill was passed. The Act guaranteed all citizens, regardless of colour, access to accommodations, theatres, public schools, churches, and cemeteries. It also forbade the barring of any person from jury service on account of race and provided that all lawsuits brought under the new law would be tried in federal, not state, courts.
After Sumner's death, Congress debated the bill. Supporters of the bill eventually agreed to drop one of its more contentious components, which would have prohibited segregation in public schools. Another contentious debate in the Senate centred on the question of whether Congress had the constitutional right to define the composition of juries selected for state courts.
The bill was passed by the House in 1875 by a vote of 162 to 99. However, Republican leaders were forced to weaken the legislation to make it palatable enough to pass in the face of growing public pressure to abandon racial legislation. A record number of seven African-American Representatives carried the debate in favour of the bill, offering personal accounts of discrimination on railroads and in restaurants. Despite this, the legislation was weakened, and all references to equal and integrated education were stripped.
The Act was signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1875. It required that:
> [A]ll persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theaters, and other places of public amusement; subject only to the conditions and limitations established by law, and applicable alike to citizens of every race and color, regardless of any previous condition of servitude.
The Act was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1883, outraging the Black community and many whites. The Court held that the Thirteenth Amendment was meant to eliminate "the badge of slavery," but not to prohibit racial discrimination in public accommodations. The Court also held that the Fourteenth Amendment granted Congress the right to regulate the behaviour of states, not individuals.
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The impact of the ruling
The US Supreme Court's ruling that the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was unconstitutional had a significant impact on the state of civil rights legislation and racial equality in the United States. The Act, which aimed to protect African Americans' minimal rights of citizenship, was struck down on the grounds that it exceeded the powers granted to Congress by the Constitution.
The ruling sent a powerful message that the Supreme Court interpreted the Constitution in a way that limited the federal government's ability to address racial discrimination. This interpretation stood in contrast to the intentions of the Act, which sought to empower the federal government to intervene in cases where the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments were violated. The Court's decision effectively weakened the ability of the federal government to protect the civil rights of African Americans and uphold their equality before the law.
Additionally, the ruling highlighted the challenges faced by lawmakers in Washington as they struggled to agree on the extent of the federal government's power in addressing racial inequality. The failure to find a consensus on this issue contributed to the erosion of civil rights protections and the embrace of segregationist policies. It would not be until 1964 that Congress would pass another civil rights law constitutionally acceptable, forbidding discrimination in public accommodations, employment, and unions.
Overall, the ruling underscored the limitations of legislative power in addressing racial inequality and the complexity of interpreting and enforcing civil rights protections under the Constitution. It served as a reminder that the struggle for racial equality and justice required ongoing efforts to challenge discriminatory practices and secure meaningful legislative change.
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Frequently asked questions
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 was a bill introduced by Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts in 1870. The bill outlawed racial discrimination in juries, schools, transportation, and public accommodations.
Yes, the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1883. The court ruled that the Act was not authorized by the 13th or 14th Amendments of the Constitution.
The Act required that all persons within the jurisdiction of the United States be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theaters, and other places of public amusement, regardless of race and color.
The Supreme Court declared the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional on the grounds that the Constitution did not extend to private businesses. The Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment granted Congress the right to regulate the behavior of states, not individuals.
