Knowing Your Constitutional Rights [15]

Amendment 15

Section 1. 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 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

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What does this mean?

Well, let's take it into parts.

Section 1:

The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State 

This means that the U.S. government and Individual States cannot deny citizens the right to vote.

[O]n account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

This means the right to vote will not be taken away from citizens due to their race, color, or if they were formerly a slave. [Amendment 13 abolished Slavery]

-- Let's go on a slight tangent --

If you've read the prior Amendment you'll realize that in Section 2 of Amendment 14 it discussed there must being no limitations to 21 year old males to vote because then that State's Representatives in Congress would be decreased.

Well, some Southern States weren't really chill with that Section of that Amendment as well as this Amendment. So, there were a lot of limitations put into place.

What type of limitations, you ask?

There was something called Poll Taxes and Literacy Tests. In order to vote, people had to pay a tax. This prevented former slaves as well as those that were not wealthy from voting because they didn't have money to pay the tax to vote. Literacy Tests were exams that had to be taken in order to qualify to vote. Due to former slaves, and those not wealthy enough to afford education, not having an education this prevented them from voting.

Why didn't it go technically against this Amendment?

Because the Amendment specifies - [O]n account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Southern States did not discriminate based on those three directly - they just made it so that people had to pay to vote & had to pass a test in order to vote. And those that were former slaves were not wealthy enough to pay the poll tax or educated enough to pass a test. Southern States essentially found a loop hole.

*Spoiler Alert - Amendment 24 made Poll Tax illegal*

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If you would like to see a Poll Tax receipt:  White Only: Jim Crow in America - Separate Is Not Equal

Poll Tax amount: $1.50  - $1.75. [site linked also explains why it limits voting]

Now, you may be sitting here like THAT'S NOT EXPENSIVE

Do take note this is also the same time frame where $20 was considered to be enough to buy 20 acres of land.

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Also Fun Fact - America isn't the only one that attempted to go the route of a poll tax. Great Britain's Margaret Thatcher tried to make that happen too  - in 1990.

National Archives: Thatcher's Poll tax miscalculation - BBC News

BACK TO THE NEXT SECTION OF THE AMENDMENT

Section 2:

The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

As mentioned in Amendment 13 and 14 - this basically means that Congress will be able to make laws enforcing this Amendment.

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To Summarize:

‣ States & the U.S. Government cannot deny citizens the right to vote based on their race, color or if they were formerly a slave.

UPDATE 13 JULY 2017

I meant to add this in earlier as I came across it a while back -  What happened when the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act [twitter thread]

END OF UPDATE 13 JULY 2017

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In what ways has President Trump & his Administration done something that pertains to this Amendment:

Nothing at this time.

- If needed this will be updated from time to time.

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Is there an Amendment you would like to more of?

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to be taken to a list & choose which one you would like to learn more about.

This is a series that is ongoing - Each Wednesday [ #WednesdayAmendment] there will be an Amendment Explanation paired with what Trump & his administration have done that pertains to the Amendment discussed.

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