“The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by man for breaking down injustice and destroying the terrible walls which imprison men because they are different from other men,” said Lyndon Baynes Johnson, the 36th President of the United States, in a speech at Washington, D.C. ("The Voting Rights Act of 1965"). Ever since the adoption of the 15th Amendment in 1870, African Americans have been denied their constitutional right to vote, despite federal policies. This discrimination was not confined only to voting rights, but was expanded throughout the entire social landscape of the nation. The rejection of basic rights has been a continuity in American society and is still present nationwide. Despite federal legislation during Reconstruction
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The fight for racial equality started with the Thirteenth Amendment. Passed in 1865, the amendment secured the freedoms of all people, abolishing all forms of slavery. In the same year, Congress established the Freedmen’s Bureau that was tasked with providing basic necessities to the freed slaves, including food, housing and education ("Freedmen 's Bureau"). Started before the end of the Civil War, the organization showed a far-sighted nature rarely seen before. Realizing the turbulence of the impending end of the war, it became absolutely necessary to provide safeguards for the newly freed African American population. As a result, the 14th and 15th Amendments were passed quickly following the war, in 1868 and 1870, respectively. The 14th Amendment made African Americans citizens of the United States, which paved the way for future laws to grant them the full freedoms of citizens. Two years later, in 1870, the 15th Amendment was passed by Congress, giving the right to vote to all races. This amendment gave voice to a never-before-heard racial group. The result was rapid, but short lived. African American voters became the majority in the south, and they quickly elected hundreds of African Americans into local offices as well as close to 600 in state legislatures ("Black Leaders During Reconstruction"). Sixteen African Americans were voted into Congress during Reconstruction, and Hiram Revels became the first African American Senator in 1870, elected the same year that blacks were given the vote ("Black Leaders During Reconstruction"). This impressive showing, however, was confined to the Reconstruction time period, and was destined to only last for a short time. The Compromise of 1877, which removed federal troops from former Confederate states, marked not
The fight for racial equality started with the Thirteenth Amendment. Passed in 1865, the amendment secured the freedoms of all people, abolishing all forms of slavery. In the same year, Congress established the Freedmen’s Bureau that was tasked with providing basic necessities to the freed slaves, including food, housing and education ("Freedmen 's Bureau"). Started before the end of the Civil War, the organization showed a far-sighted nature rarely seen before. Realizing the turbulence of the impending end of the war, it became absolutely necessary to provide safeguards for the newly freed African American population. As a result, the 14th and 15th Amendments were passed quickly following the war, in 1868 and 1870, respectively. The 14th Amendment made African Americans citizens of the United States, which paved the way for future laws to grant them the full freedoms of citizens. Two years later, in 1870, the 15th Amendment was passed by Congress, giving the right to vote to all races. This amendment gave voice to a never-before-heard racial group. The result was rapid, but short lived. African American voters became the majority in the south, and they quickly elected hundreds of African Americans into local offices as well as close to 600 in state legislatures ("Black Leaders During Reconstruction"). Sixteen African Americans were voted into Congress during Reconstruction, and Hiram Revels became the first African American Senator in 1870, elected the same year that blacks were given the vote ("Black Leaders During Reconstruction"). This impressive showing, however, was confined to the Reconstruction time period, and was destined to only last for a short time. The Compromise of 1877, which removed federal troops from former Confederate states, marked not