Free Essay: 15th Amendment to the Constitution of United States
The United States constitution presents its citizens with different privileges and rights to abide to throughout their lives. There are different amendments that have been passed and ratified within specified eras. The 15th Amendment to the Constitution of United States is one of the exceptional amendments that have impacted the political and social environment of the U.S. It is a substantial amendment that forbids the federal and state government from refuting citizens their right to vote based on factors such as color, enslavement and race.
The 15th Amendment was ratified in February 3rd 1870 as the third and last of the Reconstruction amendments. There is a complex and deep rooted history when it comes to the 15th Amendment of the constitution. It all dates back to the final years of the American Civil War and the reconstruction era that followed. The congress debated thoroughly on the rights of the millions of black slaves in the country.
By 1869, amendments had been voted for to abolish slavery and provide citizenship and equal protection under the constitutional laws. The narrow win of Ulysses S. Grant to presidency in 1868 convinced a large number of republicans that black voters were essential in shaping the party’s future. The congress proposed a compromise amendment banishing franchise restrictions on the basis of color, race and enslavement.
The amendment endured ratification fight and was adopted on March 30th 1870. Majority of black voters in the southern parts of the U.S were effectively disfranchised by the new constitution and laws that entailed barriers such as poll taxes and discriminatory literacy, but the white voters were excused by grandfather clauses. The texts from on the 15th amendment constitution of the United States entail two sections that state;
Section One:
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.
Section Two:
The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
The Voting Rights Act signed by President Lyndon Johnson [1908-1973] on 1965 aimed to overcome legal barriers at local and state levels that barred African Americans from voting strengthened the 15th amendment. The voting right gave non-whites the opportunity to cast their votes and this improved the turnout in most of the stations. After ratification of the 15th Amendment, Thomas Mundy Peterson of Perth Amboy, New Jersey became the first black American to vote under the right of the amendment. He cast his vote on 31st march 1870.
Coincidentally, Hiram Rhoades Revels, a republican from Natchez, Mississippi became the first Africa-American to ever sit in the United States congress after being elected to the senate. On 2008, barrack Obama became the 44th president of the United States and the first African-American to hold the position. In a sense, many changes being experienced in the United States can all be attributed to the great amendments to the U.S constitutions. Progressively, Americans will continue to enjoy their constitutions rights and privileges without any qualms or restriction by the federal government in office.
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Sources:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-CONAN-1992/pdf/GPO-CONAN-1992-10-16.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifteenth_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution
http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/fifteenth-amendment