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Voting Rights Act Of 1965 Essay

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In 1870, the Fifteenth amendment was passed which stated, “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” (civilrights.org). Although this amendment was passed, it would take more than sixty years until African Americans were fairly admitted to vote. Before the Voting Rights Act of 1965, African Americans fought discrimination and violence on the way to the voting ballot. Jim Crow laws enacted various voting restrictions, including poll taxes, literacy tests, moral character tests, and document interpreting tests. The Voting rights act of 1965 would silence all the voting rights issues and bring fairness and equality to all races. With the help of the riots in Selma, Lyndon B. Johnson, and the enforcement of the act; voting discrimination would be greatly reduced over a span of sixty years. …show more content…

One event that outraged many Americans was on March 7, 1965, when peaceful participants in a voting rights march from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital in Montgomery were met by Alabama state troopers who attacked them with nightsticks, tear gas and whips after they refused to turn back. During the march, Martin Luther King Jr. rallied the protestors up and chanted, “We're going to stand up amid anything they can muster up, letting the world know that we are determined to be free" (history.com). MLK said this in order to evoke emotions and establish the fact that they would do anything for freedom. Some protesters were severely beaten, and others ran for their lives. The incident was captured on national

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In March of 1965, thousands of Americans black and white began the 54-mile march from Selma, Alabama to Montgomery. All the men and women of the crowd had the same agenda of protesting in favor of Black Civil Rights, but along the way encountered state police who proceeded to brutally beat the crowd on national television1. As news of this horrific event spread through the screens and radios of America President Lyndon B. Johnson stood by creating the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to ensure that every American regardless of Race or Gender could legally and without confliction have the right to vote. Shortly thereafter on March 15, 1965 Johnson took to the podium and in front of cabinet members and foreign ambassadors proceeded to deliver the speech

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On august, 6, 1965 President Lyndon Johnson signed a law that made it easier for African Americans to vote in the US elections. Up until that time, some community’s attempted to discriminate against black people and members of other minority group. They required voters to take written tests or pay special taxes four the write to vote The Voting Rights Act of 1965 put an end to voter discrimination.

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President LBJ and congress addressed these issues and signed the Voting Rights Act. The purpose of the voting rights act was to change the legal barriers that were disenfranchising Black Americans and LBJ made it a priority to persuade everyone even though this was a very radical idea for this time. Not only were these barriers a violation of the 15th Amendment, but they were also downright discriminatory and affecting public opinion negatively. By LBJ creating this compromise, he created a bigger platform for more voters' voices to be heard, and for even more compromises to be made in the future in response to public opinion. In addition, considering this being a radical concept during the period of segregation and racism, the ratification of this amendment helped the country begin to make advances in the civil rights movement.

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The Fifteenth Amendment granted African-American males the right to vote in the late 1800s. However, through the use of poll taxes, literacy tests and other means, southern states were able to effectively discourage African-Americans. It was not till 1965, almost a century later, that the Voting Rights Act was passed by Congress and signed by President Lyndon Baines Johnson; enforcing the Fifteenth Amendment. But acquiring the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was an enduring task for African-American citizens and supporters. A perfect example is “Bloody Sunday”, where a group of activist, in their attempt to march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama protesting for the rights of voters, were beaten and left for dead of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.

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