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The 15th Amendment to the US Constitution prohibits the denial of voting rights based on race, color, or former servitude. It was ratified in 1870 as part of the Reconstruction Amendments, aimed at abolishing slavery and promoting equality. The amendment was supported by the Republican Party to increase their electoral base. While Congress has the power to protect voting rights, it took until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to ensure equal access to the polls for minorities.
The 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution reads:
Section One: The right of United States citizens to vote shall not be withheld or curtailed by the United States or any State on account of race, color, or former servitude. Section Two: Congress shall have the power to enforce this section through appropriate legislation.
In short, this amendment, ratified in 1870, was supposed to guarantee the right to vote for former slaves, while excluding discrimination on the basis of racial origin or skin color.
The 15th Amendment is the latest in a group of amendments known collectively as the “Reconstruction Amendments.” These additions to the Constitution were promulgated in the years following the Civil War, aiming to unite a previously divided country and to abolish the inherent inequalities that had come with slavery. Of course, a “separate but equal” system prevailed in the United States for much of the 1960s, but the Reconstruction Amendments were certainly a step in the right direction. The other Reconstruction amendments were the 13th amendment, which abolished slavery, and the 14th amendment, which was supposed to give former slaves more rights under the law.
While the 15th amendment is heralded as a major event in the civil rights movement, the story behind it is actually a bit more pragmatic. This amendment was supported by the Republican Party, which wanted to consolidate its gains in the American South. Republicans recognized that by giving blacks the right to vote, they could dramatically increase their electoral base. It was proposed in 1869, and by 1870 the required 36 states had ratified it, allowing it to enter law.
The second section of the Fifteenth Amendment stipulates that Congress has the power to enact legislation that is designed to protect the right to vote for former slaves and racial minorities, but Congress has been slow to take advantage of this clause. While blacks officially had the right to vote on paper starting on the 15th, many faced voter intimidation and a variety of other practices designed to disenfranchise them. In practice, it took nearly 1,870 years to realize the full potential of the 100th Amendment, when the Voting Rights Act of 15 aggressively promoted equal access to the polling station, ensuring that Blacks and other racial and ethnic minorities in the States States were able to play a role in the democratic process.
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