chapter 6 section 3. the 15 th amendment ratified 1870 vote cannot be denied any u.s. citizen...
TRANSCRIPT
Suffrage and Civil RightsChapter 6 Section 3
The 15th Amendment
Ratified 1870Vote cannot be denied any U.S. citizen
because of race, color, or pervious condition of servitude
Southern whites used violence, threats, social pressures, literacy test, poll taxes, white primaries, and gerrymandering deny African Americans their 15th Amendment rights
The 15th Amendment
Smith v. Allwright (1944)Banned white primaries
Gomillion v. Lightfoot (1960s)Banned gerrymandering for purposes of racial
discrimination, but use of literacy test and poll taxes remained into the 1960s
Civil RightsCivil Rights Act of 1957
set up commission to investigate voter discrimination and enabled attorney general to enforce voting rights
Civil Rights Act of 1960 provided for federal voting referees to serve where
voter discrimination existed and help eligible voters register and vote
Civil Rights of 1964Banned discrimination in jobs and other areas and
discriminatory voter registration or literacy requirements
Civil RightsVoting Rights Act of 1965
Prompted by civil rights march in Selma, Alabama; applied 15th Amendment to all elections, not just federal; challenged poll taxes and literacy test; authorized voting examiners; required federal preclearance for any changes to State election laws
South Carolina v. KatzenbachUpheld Voting Rights Act of 1965
Voting Rights Act Amendments of 1970Extended the Act for five years; banned literacy
tests
Civil Rights
Oregon v. MitchellUpheld ban on literacy tests and the residency
requirements in the lawLaw extended in 1975
Ban on literacy tests made permanent; applied provisions to language minorities
Equal Voting Rights