Remember When: The 15th Amendment was Adopted into the Constitution

This week marks the anniversary of the adoption of the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution. The amendment states that "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."

The amendment was a significant step towards expanding democracy in the United States, particularly for African American men. As a result of the Amendment, the Black community in the South gained power with the help of white allies, thus resulting in significant changes to the South. Hiram Rhodes Revels was the first African American elected to the US Congress in 1870. In spite of their substantial electoral majority, Black Republicans did not attain political office in proportion to their numbers. However, Revels and a dozen other Black men served in Congress during Reconstruction, while more than 600 held state legislator positions and many more held local positions.

The Southern Republican Party was dissolved at the end of Reconstruction in the late 1870s, and the 14th and 15th Amendments were effectively nullified by Southern state governments. Through discriminatory laws and practices like poll taxes, literacy tests, and violence and intimidation at the polls, Black citizens were effectively denied the right to vote in the South. It would take further legislation, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the 24th Amendment to address voter suppression and discrimination against all marginalized groups.