Jonah Patel
The Fifteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, passed by Congress on February 26, 1869, and ratified on February 3, 1870, granted all men the right to vote, regardless of race, colour, or previous condition of servitude. The official text of the amendment is as follows: The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, colour, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. Despite the amendment, many African American men were unable to exercise their right to vote due to discriminatory practices and laws such as literacy tests, poll taxes, and violence.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name of Amendment | Fifteenth Amendment |
| Date of Ratification | February 3, 1870 |
| Voting Rights Granted To | All male citizens |
| Voting Rights Based On | Ethnicity or prior slave status |
| Voting Rights Not Based On | Race, color, or previous condition of servitude |
| Power to Enforce Article | Congress |
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What You'll Learn
The Fifteenth Amendment
> "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."
This narrow interpretation, along with discriminatory practices and laws such as literacy tests, poll taxes, and the activities of the Ku Klux Klan, effectively prevented many African American men in the Southern states from exercising their constitutional right to vote. By the 20th century, the majority of African Americans in the South had little to no electoral power. It was not until the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which authorized federal supervision of voter registration and abolished all remaining deterrents to exercising the right to vote, that these barriers began to be addressed.
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Voting rights for African American men
The Fifteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, passed by Congress on February 26, 1869, and ratified on February 3, 1870, granted African American men the right to vote. The official text of the amendment is as follows:
> The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
The Fifteenth Amendment was the last of the three Reconstruction Amendments and was enacted after the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery and the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteed citizenship. The passage of the amendment was seen as the fulfillment of promises made to African Americans, and it was hailed as a "greater revolution than that of 1776" by historian Eric Foner.
However, despite the significance of the Fifteenth Amendment, African Americans continued to face barriers to voting due to discriminatory practices and laws. Literacy tests, poll taxes, and "grandfather clauses" were used to disenfranchise African Americans and prevent them from exercising their constitutional right to vote. This led to the rise of "Jim Crow" laws in the Southern states, which further undermined the voting rights of African Americans.
It wasn't until 1965 that more direct action was taken to address the ongoing issue of African American disenfranchisement. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 abolished remaining deterrents to voting and authorized federal supervision of voter registration where necessary. This act prohibited voter discrimination based on race, color, or membership in a language minority group, and required certain places to provide election materials in languages other than English.
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The right to vote regardless of race
The Fifteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, passed by Congress on February 26, 1869, and ratified on February 3, 1870, granted all men, including African Americans, the right to vote, regardless of their race, colour, or previous condition of servitude. The official text of the amendment is as follows:
> The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, colour, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Despite the Fifteenth Amendment's significant impact, the right to vote was interpreted relatively narrowly by the Supreme Court throughout the late nineteenth and mid-twentieth centuries. For example, in the 1876 United States v. Reese case, the Supreme Court ruled that the Fifteenth Amendment did not grant the right to vote but instead prohibited its restriction. This ruling contributed to the emergence of "Jim Crow" laws in the Southern states, which undermined the newly achieved constitutional liberties of African Americans, including their right to vote.
Discriminatory practices and laws, such as poll taxes, literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and the intimidation tactics of the Ku Klux Klan, prevented many African Americans in the Southern states from exercising their right to vote. Consequently, by the twentieth century, most African Americans in the South had little to no electoral power. It was not until the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that these discriminatory practices were officially abolished, and federal supervision of voter registration was authorised to ensure all citizens could exercise their right to vote.
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The removal of property ownership requirements
In the early years of the United States, voting eligibility was often restricted to white male individuals who owned property of a certain dollar value. This was motivated by the perception that those with property to their name would have a greater stake in the outcome of taxation, tariffs, and local policies.
During the Presidential Election of 1828, the majority of land-ownership requirements were eliminated, and 28 years later, every state had removed them. The removal of property ownership requirements, along with the passage of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments after the Civil War, paved the way for the expansion of civil rights to the African American population, including the right to vote.
The Fifteenth Amendment, passed by Congress on February 26, 1869, and ratified on February 3, 1870, granted all American men the right to vote, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or previous condition of servitude. This amendment, also known as the "Right to Vote" amendment, was the last of the Reconstruction Amendments and was a significant step towards racial equality in the United States.
Despite the Fifteenth Amendment's guarantee of voting rights for African American men, many were still unable to exercise this right due to discriminatory practices and laws such as literacy tests, poll taxes, and the activities of the Ku Klux Klan. It was not until the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and its extensions in 1970, 1975, and 1982, that remaining deterrents to voting were abolished and federal supervision of voter registration was authorized where necessary.
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The Voting Rights Act of 1965
The Fifteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified on February 3, 1870, granted all men the right to vote regardless of their race, ethnicity, or previous slave status. However, despite the amendment, many African American men were unable to exercise this right due to discriminatory practices and laws in place, particularly in the Southern states.
Now, here is some detailed information about the Voting Rights Act of 1965:
The passage of the Voting Rights Act was preceded by peaceful demonstrations and protests organised by civil rights leaders, such as Martin Luther King Jr., who led a peaceful civil rights march in Selma, Alabama, in 1965. The violence and murders that met these demonstrations brought renewed attention to the issue of voting rights and prompted President Johnson and Congress to initiate meaningful national voting rights legislation. The Act has been recognised as one of the most effective pieces of federal civil rights legislation in the country and has been the subject of subsequent efforts to strengthen and protect voting rights, such as the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act introduced in Congress in 2019.
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Frequently asked questions
The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified on February 3, 1870, granted all men, including African American men, the right to vote.
The official text of the 15th Amendment is as follows: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."
The 15th Amendment was significant in granting African American men the right to vote, however, many were still unable to exercise this right due to discriminatory practices and laws such as literacy tests, poll taxes, and violence. The Supreme Court's interpretation of the amendment in the case of United States v. Reese (1876) further limited its impact, as it determined that the amendment prohibited restrictions on voting rights rather than granting them.
