The Choice: The 15th Amendment
This amendment granted the right to vote to Black men, but was immediately met with Jim Crow resistance tactics.
Issue #933 The Choice, Friday, September 26, 2025
Every Friday until the end of 2025, we will publish a post about each of the 27 Amendments to the Constitution.
The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, also known as the Reconstruction Amendments, abolished slavery, defined citizenship and equal protection under the law, and prohibited racial discrimination in voting. The 13th Amendment (1865) outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude. The 14th Amendment (1868) granted citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the U.S. and guaranteed equal protection under the law. The 15th Amendment (1870) prohibited denying citizens the right to vote based on race, color, or previous servitude.
The Reconstruction era, which followed the end of the Civil War, was marked by both aspirations and challenges as the country sought to address the rights and status of formerly enslaved individuals.
The passage of the 13th Amendment in 1865 abolished slavery, but it did not address broader issues of citizenship and civil rights for Black Americans. The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, conferred citizenship and promised equal protection under the law.
The language of the 15th Amendment, ratified on February 3, 1870, was deliberately focused and clear: “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.”
Championed by Radical Republicans in Congress, the amendment was part of a broader strategy to ensure that the rights of African Americans were protected. Enfranchising Black men also promised to bolster the political power of the Republican Party in the South.
During the early years of its enactment, Black men participated in elections and held public office in unprecedented numbers.
However, this progress was met with fierce resistance. Southern states, determined to maintain white supremacy, quickly devised a series of discriminatory practices and laws. The emergence of the Jim Crow era marked a period of regression, where the promises of the 15th Amendment were systematically undermined.
Jim Crow Laws
Jim Crow laws were a collection of state and local statutes that legalized racial segregation and disenfranchised African Americans in the Southern United States. Established in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these laws enforced racial discrimination and sought to maintain white supremacy by circumventing the rights granted by the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments.
Literacy Tests
One of the mechanisms used to disenfranchise Black voters was the implementation of literacy tests. These tests were ostensibly designed to assess a voter’s ability to read and understand the Constitution or other legal documents. However, in practice, they were highly subjective and administered in a discriminatory manner. White voters were often exempted from these tests or given easier versions, while Black voters were subjected to complex and unfair evaluations.
Poll Taxes
Poll taxes were another tool used to suppress Black voter turnout. These were fees levied as a prerequisite for voting and were disproportionately burdensome for African Americans, many of whom lived in poverty due to systemic economic disadvantages. The financial barrier created by poll taxes effectively excluded many Black citizens from participating in elections.
Grandfather Clauses
To further entrench racial voter suppression, Southern states enacted grandfather clauses. These provisions allowed individuals to bypass literacy tests and poll taxes if their grandfathers had been eligible to vote before the Civil War. Since the ancestors of most Black Americans had been enslaved and thus ineligible to vote, these clauses effectively excluded them while allowing many poor and illiterate whites to vote.
Impact and Resistance
Despite these oppressive measures, the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s played a crucial role in challenging Jim Crow laws and advocating for legislative changes. This culminated in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which aimed to eliminate barriers to voting for African Americans and enforce the guarantees of the 14th and 15th Amendments.
In summary, while the 15th Amendment was a significant legal advancement, its promise was undermined by discriminatory practices like literacy tests, poll taxes, and grandfather clauses during the Jim Crow era. The fight to dismantle these barriers and secure true voting equality required decades of activism and legal reform, highlighting the ongoing struggle for civil rights and justice in the United States.
A Legacy of Struggle and Progress
Despite the challenges, the spirit of the 15th Amendment endured. It laid the foundation for future civil rights movements, serving as a cornerstone for advocacy and legislation aimed at dismantling racial barriers to voting. The 20th century saw renewed efforts to secure voting rights for African Americans, culminating in the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, which aimed to eliminate the practices that had long suppressed Black voter turnout.
Our Choice
Today, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which embodied the 15th Amendment, is under attack and in danger of being eliminated altogether.
But we are reminded of the power of choice—the fundamental right to participate in shaping the destiny of our nation. It is a right that must be guarded vigilantly, nurtured continuously, and extended equitably to all citizens.
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