Read the following excerpt from the Fifteenth Amendment:
“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.”
Describe how this law attempted to reconcile the discrepancy between American ideals and public policy.
(1 point)
Responses
Large numbers of people march on Washington for the passage of laws.
Large numbers of people march on Washington for the passage of laws.
The Supreme Court addresses the Fifteenth Amendment’s constitutionality.
The Supreme Court addresses the Fifteenth Amendment’s constitutionality.
The NAACP lobbies Congress for passage of a right-to-vote law.
The NAACP lobbies Congress for passage of a right-to-vote law.
Congress passes a law to ensure all people have the right to vote.
The correct response is: Congress passes a law to ensure all people have the right to vote.
The correct response is: Congress passes a law to ensure all people have the right to vote.
The Fifteenth Amendment was passed by Congress in an attempt to reconcile the discrepancy between American ideals and public policy. It explicitly states that the right to vote should not be denied or abridged on the basis of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. This amendment aimed to eliminate racial discrimination in voting and was intended to grant African American men the right to vote. By enshrining this principle in the Constitution, Congress sought to ensure that all citizens, regardless of their race or previous status, would have the right to participate in the democratic process.
The correct response would be: Congress passes a law to ensure all people have the right to vote.
The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as stated in the excerpt, aimed to address the discrepancy between American ideals and public policy regarding voting rights. It explicitly states that the right to vote should not be denied or restricted based on race, color, or previous servitude.
To understand how this law attempted to reconcile the discrepancy, one needs to consider the historical context. Prior to the passage of this amendment in 1870, African Americans, especially those who were formerly enslaved, were systematically disenfranchised through various means such as literacy tests, poll taxes, and violence. This meant that they were denied their basic right to participate in the democratic process.
The Fifteenth Amendment sought to change this by enshrining in the Constitution the principle that all citizens, regardless of their race, color, or previous condition of servitude, should have the right to vote. By making it illegal for the United States or any state to deny or abridge this right based on these factors, the amendment aimed to bring American ideals of equality and liberty into alignment with public policy.
However, it is important to note that the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment was only the first step towards achieving true equality in voting rights. Despite the amendment's intent, many states continued to implement discriminatory practices to circumvent its provisions, leading to ongoing struggles for voting rights that persisted for more than a century.
So, to summarize, the law attempted to reconcile the discrepancy between American ideals and public policy by explicitly stating that no citizen should be denied their right to vote based on race, color, or previous servitude. However, achieving the full realization of this ideal required further activism, legislation, and legal battles over the following decades.