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African-American Ratification

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During 1865-1870, the years following the Civil War, the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution were ratified. Within these Amendments, African-Americans gained the right to become US citizens in the Fourteenth Amendment and were granted the ability to vote through the Fifteenth Amendment. The ratifications of both of the Amendments marked a turning point in history, both in politics and society, by allowing them to officially have rights. After they were ratified, politics changed by giving African-Americans more representation in government, however socially, racism stayed the same by black codes being created while education changed through the Freedmen’s Bureau. Before the ratification of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth …show more content…

Before the ratification of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendment they were not recognized as US citizens, therefore they were not allowed to vote or serve in Senate or in Congress. After the Amendments were ratified, they gained the right to vote. To protect their right, the government made a law that if the South denied blacks the right to vote, they would be punished. In the government, African-Americans started to run for political positions. Hiram Rhodes Revels was the first ever African-American to serve in the US Senate when he was elected to the US Senate to represent Mississippi in 1870 and 1871 during the Reconstruction era. Following him was Blanche K Bruce who was also an African-American politician. Bruce represented Mississippi as a Republican in the US Senate from 1875 to 1881 and was the first elected black senator to serve a full term. Overall, there was a huge change in black representation in the government with approximately 600 African-Americans serving in state legislatures and many more holding local …show more content…

However, there were some situations before their ratification that stayed the same after 1865. Segregation, especially in the South, took a huge toll on the lives of African-Americans. Many transportation systems and restaurants were segregated by color therefore, some were whites only and some had areas designated for black and area designated for whites. Even after the ratification of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, by 1900, persons of color were required to be seperated from whites in railroad cars and depots, hotels, theaters, restaurants, barber shops and other establishments. Many of the segregation laws didn’t go away until after the Civil Rights movement which occurred from 1954 to

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747 Words | 3 Pages

Following the ending of the Civil War in 1865, America was in an era known as the Reconstruction. The Reconstruction lasted until 1877. Citizens were attempting to rebuild our nation following one of the deadliest war in American History. In this time, the Fourteenth Amendment and Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution were ratified. Although slaves were freed, African Americans still faced intense racial prejudice and discrimination.

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728 Words | 3 Pages

Originally, African Americans had to be segregated and weren’t even allowed to vote. In 1965 after the Montgomery March, Lyndon B Johnson passed the Voting Rights Act, and later in 1968 both the Civil Rights Act of 1968 and the Fourteenth Amendment were passed. The Fourteenth Amendmendment said that “all persons born of naturalized in the United States” could legally vote. These acts got rid of literacy tests, and in 1968, when Nixon became president (Document H), there was over two times the amount of African American voters than there was in 1960 (Document G). African Americans also gained large support from a president, John F. Kennedy, which wasn’t something anyone had expected looking back at how past presidents acted.

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727 Words | 3 Pages

By this time, Congress adopted the 15th Amendment, which granted black men the right to vote. Through the ratification of the 14th and 15th amendments, the Republican party saw evidence that their desire of racial advancement was seen, creating hostility amid white

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677 Words | 3 Pages

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was created, by Lyndon B. Johnson, to further enforce the 15th Amendment of the United States. The purpose of the act was to ensure democracy within the United States by giving everyone an equal ability to practice their rights. Throughout the history of the United States, African Americans have been denied of their basic freedoms as citizens. The Voting Rights Act made it harder for states to further deny African-Americans, and other

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1328 Words | 6 Pages

A proceeding from the Convention of the Colored People of Virginia stated that for all men to have a say in their rights, they should tear down the restriction on the color of their skin for voting (Document H). Their purpose in saying this was to voice the thoughts that many blacks had in order to encourage them to fight for it. Their efforts were not done in vain as the 15th Amendment was passed, which destroyed the suffrage restraint against race. Although this act did not apply to black women, it was a movement in the right direction nonetheless. African Americans were also able to further advance their positions in society by obtaining government positions and participating in state constitutional conventions.

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491 Words | 2 Pages

Although slavery was declared over after the passing of the thirteenth amendment, African Americans were not being treated with the respect or equality they deserved. Socially, politically and economically, African American people were not being given equal opportunities as white people. They had certain laws directed at them, which held them back from being equal to their white peers. They also had certain requirements, making it difficult for many African Americans to participate in the opportunity to vote for government leaders. Although they were freed from slavery, there was still a long way to go for equality through America’s reconstruction plan.

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1690 Words | 7 Pages

It was rough for African Americans in the 1890’s, and though they tried to live a normal easy life they always had obstacles that got in the way. They had thought everything was going good for them with the 13th and 14th amendment being announced. Also The Emancipation Proclamation which stated, on January 1, 1863, "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free" was a speech that actually came out before the 13th and 14th amendment which was the whole reason why those amendments had came out. The 13th amendment stated that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction”. This was such a big deal since

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563 Words | 3 Pages

The 15th Amendment (Amendment XV), which gave African-American men the right to vote, was inserted into the U.S. Constitution on March 30, 1870. Passed by Congress the year before, the amendment says, “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.” Although the amendment was passed in the late 1870s, many racist practices were used to oppose African-Americans from voting, especially in the Southern States like Georgia and Alabama. After many years of racism, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 aimed to overthrow legal barricades at the state and local levels that deny African-Americans their right to vote. In the

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1748 Words | 7 Pages

Have you ever wondered how blacks gained their right to suffrage and how gaining that right opened a door for them in congress? The frontier of African suffrage allowed Hiram Revels and Blanche Bruce to get a spot in the U.S Congress around 1870-1881. They both represented Mississippi, and both served different number of years. As you know that this frontier of African suffrage allowed Bruce and Revels to get a spot in congress, but it also allowed Africans and other different races to gain more rights.

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150 Words | 1 Pages

In 1821, the New York state constitutional convention elevated the requisite for blacks to $250, effectively depriving virtually all New York blacks of the capability to vote. By 1860, blacks could now vote on the same foundation as whites in just five New England states alone. The downside to this good news was that this region only held 4 percent of the entire nation's free black population. Before, blacks were considered potential members of the political nation, but now being a part of the body politic was progressively being separated by race. Now, no blacks had full equality in front of the law, and they were denied from schools, militia, and other public institutions.

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473 Words | 2 Pages

Post Civil War, African Americans started to gain rights to gain rights, and soon gain rights equal to whites. While there were some people/things standing in their way (KKK, Black Codes), in the end they got what they needed; Equality. Many acts and laws were passed to aid the new rights now held by African Americans, as well as the numerous people willing to help. New Amendments were added to give African Americans rights after the war, all giving them some equal rights to whites. The first of the three added was the Thirteenth Amendment, it gave African Americans freedom from slave owners, and stated that no one could be kept as a slave in the U.S..

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1821 Words | 8 Pages

Even though the government adopted the Voting Rights Act in 1965, African Americans’ suffrages were still restricted because of southern states’ obstructions. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was important for blacks to participate in political elections, but before this act was passed, there were several events led to its proposal. The government gave African Americans’ the right to vote by passing the 15th Amendment, but in the Southern States, blacks’ suffrages were limited by grandfather clauses, “poll taxes, literacy tests, and other bureaucratic restrictions” (ourdocuments.gov). As times went on, most African Americans couldn’t register their votes.

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101 Words | 1 Pages

The information regarding the history of African Americans and voting is very interesting. You are correct regarding the hard time that African Americans went through to vote. Mississippi still have major problems in voting rights. Many organizations are still fighting with Mississippi Constitution. In Mississippi a person cannot vote if convicted of certain crimes, in 2008 the Attorney General added 11 additional crimes.

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342 Words | 2 Pages

African Americans had a hard time in the south during the 1900s. The obstacles that A.A. had to endure was not be able to vote due to the color of their skin. Other factors was poll taxes, literacy tests, and bureaucratic restrictions that also played a part in denying them the right to vote. As a result, very few African Americans were registered voters, and they had very little, if any, political power, either locally or nationally.

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205 Words | 1 Pages

Liberty, equality and justice, were not always rights given to all people born in the United States of America. Throughout the history of this great nation, African Americans have been targeted and denied the ability to exert the rights to vote. Although the denial of these rights is noticeable through our history books, one of the outstanding, and conceals the others rights, this being the right to be equal as there Anglo brothers. The right to vote is one example where blacks were denied the right to exert their freedom. The Voting Right act signed to law by President Lyndon Johnson on August 6, 1965, provided for a direct federal protection that enabled African Americans to register to vote, and to vote without discrimination on the basis of race, and color.

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