The Civil War Amendments and the Civil Rights Act of 1866
The structure of American society changed radically with the Civil War. Four million slaves were now free people. The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, to the United States Constitution were known as the Civil War Amendments. The amendments attempted to deal with this enormous change in the country after the Civil War. They were critical to providing Black Americans with the rights and protections of citizenship. The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were known as the Reconstruction Amendments. The Republicans in Congress, however, wanted to safeguard against slavery ever coming back.
The amendments and other legislation from this period is credited to the work of Radical Republicans in Congress. They called themselves “Radical” because of their goal of ending slavery and guaranteeing civil rights for American Americans. Moderate Republicans, including President Abraham Lincoln before his assassination, and members of the Democratic Party did not fully support the same goals. This led to conflict during and after the Civil War. President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation declared that the 3.5 million enslaved people in the South were free on January 1, 1863. Although its immediate outcome was not as impacting as anticipated, it set the stage for the future abolition of slavery and changed the outcome of African American lives in the United States.
To ensure that the abolition of slavery was guaranteed, and to establish equality for the formerly enslaved Black Americans and all others, amendments to the Constitution was initiated. These amendments to the Constitution, were adopted between 1865 and 1870. The 13th Amendment abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. Shortly after ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment in December 1865, on January 5, 1866, Lyman Trumbull, the Senator from Illinois, introduced the first federal civil rights bill in the nation’s history. According to Trumbull, the “abstract truths and principles” of the Thirteenth Amendment meant nothing “unless the persons who are to be affected . . . have some means of availing themselves of their benefits.”
President Andrew Johnson vetoed the bill, antagonistic to the claims of equality of African Americans and inflexible in his belief that market forces would eventually resolve the issue. The veto message incensed Congress, who had before it mountains of evidence of widespread mistreatment of African Americans throughout the South by both private and public parties. Congress overrode Johnson’s veto on April 9, 1866, and elements of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 eventually became the template for the Fourteenth Amendment. The 14th Amendment, which was ratified on July 28, 1868, is packed full of lofty phrases like due process, equal protection, and liberty. Of all the amendments to the U.S. Constitution, the 14th has been used in more Supreme Court cases than any other amendment.
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Amendment #1The 13th Amendment -
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Amendment #2The 14th Amendment -
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Amendment #3The 15th Amendment -
The Civil Rights
Act of 1866
The 13th Amendment was the first of the Reconstruction Amendments. It was passed in Congress on January 31, 1865, a few months before President Lincoln was assassinated. This amendment is remembered as the one which formally ended slavery in the United States. However, there is an important section of the Amendment that is frequently overlooked.
Even though Lincoln had freed slaves in Union territories with the Emancipation Proclamation, the institution of slavery itself was still legal in the United States. The South, which lost the war, would not have voluntarily abolished slavery, so the issue had to be forced. The United States was one of the last countries in the world to abolish slavery.
The abolition of slavery in the South meant the loss of massive amounts of wealth for southern landowners. On February 1, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln approved the Joint Resolution of Congress submitting the proposed amendment to the state legislatures. The necessary number of states (3/4) ratified it by December 6, 1865.
The 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” The passing of the 13th Amendment did not yield an immediate welcoming for slaves into White American society during the nineteenth century.
To challenge the new amendment, former Confederate states established "Black Codes" to preserve the privileges of slavery in terms of free labor from newly freed Blacks, and to prevent free Black men and women from asserting their newly granted civil rights supported by the Constitution. With the adoption of the 13th Amendment, the United States found a final constitutional solution to the issue of slavery.
The second Civil War amendment, the 14th amendment was the most controversial of the Reconstruction Amendments. This amendment extended liberties and rights granted by the Bill of Rights to formerly enslaved people. A major provision of the 14th Amendment was to grant citizenship to “All persons born or naturalized in the United States,” thereby granting citizenship to formerly enslaved people.
Another equally important provision was the statement that “nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” The right to due process of law and equal protection of the law now applied to both the federal and state governments.
On June 16, 1866, the House Joint Resolution proposing the 14th Amendment to the Constitution was submitted to the states. On July 28, 1868, the 14th amendment was declared, in a certificate of the Secretary of State. It was ratified by the necessary 28 of the 37 States, and became law. Congressman John A. Bingham of Ohio, intended that the amendment also nationalize the Bill of Rights by making it binding upon the states.
When introducing the amendment, Senator Jacob Howard of Michigan specifically stated that the privileges and immunities clause would extend to the states “the personal rights guaranteed and secured by the first eight amendments."
Often considered as one of the most consequential amendments, it addresses citizenship rights and equal protection under the law. And was proposed in response to issues related to former slaves following the American Civil War. The amendment was bitterly contested, particularly by the states of the defeated Confederacy. Those states were forced to ratify it in order to regain representation in Congress.
The 15th Amendment was the third of the Reconstruction Amendments. The amendment reads, “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.”
This Amendment granted Black men the right to vote. This provided millions of formerly enslaved men the opportunity to participate politically, whereas before they were excluded from exercising this right. Women's suffrage was excluded, and women would not gain the right to vote until 1920.
After African Americans gained the vote, the Ku Klux Klan directed some of their attacks to disrupt their political meetings and intimidate them at the polls, to suppress black participation. In the mid-1870s, there was a rise in new insurgent groups, such as the Red Shirts and White League, who acted on behalf of the Democratic Party to violently suppress Black voting.
Actions to prevent Black Americans from exercising their civil rights became known as “Jim Crow” laws. Some examples of Jim Crow laws are poll taxes, literacy tests, or owning property as a condition of voting. While White Democrats regained power in southern state legislatures, through the 1880s and early 1890s, numerous Blacks continued to be elected to local offices in many states, as well as to Congress as late as 1894.
Reconstruction Acts of 1867
The end of the American Civil War marked the beginning of a long and difficult process of Reconstruction, during which the Southern states had to meet certain conditions before they could be readmitted to the Union. These conditions, known as the Reconstruction Acts, were designed to ensure that the Southern states would embrace the principles of freedom and equality for all citizens, regardless of race.
Mid-Reconstruction Moves
The Reconstruction Acts, were four statutes passed during the Reconstruction Era by the Congress addressing the requirement for Southern States that had seceded from the Union to be readmitted to the Union. It divided the South into five military districts. These five military districts in conjunction with the Freedman’s bureau sought to protect the rights and lives of the newly freed Blacks. These acts forced former Confederate states governments to ratify their constitutions giving rights to Blacks or forfeit their representation in Congress. After 1868, violence accompanied many of the southern elections, especially in the Carolina’s, Louisiana and Mississippi. Various groups sprung up to try and intimidate Republican candidates out of office and Blacks from voting at all.
On March 2, 1867, Congress overrode President Andrew Johnson’s veto and passed the first of four statutes. These states were required to meet several conditions before they could be readmitted to the Union. These laws divided the former Confederate states (with the exception of Tennessee) into five military districts and outlined the process of readmission to the Union. The conditions included the following:
1. Ratify the 14th Amendment: The 14th Amendment to the Constitution granted citizenship rights to all persons born or naturalized in the United States, including African Americans. The Southern states were required to ratify this amendment to be readmitted to the Union.
2. Adopt new state constitutions: The Southern states were required to adopt new state constitutions that guaranteed African Americans the right to vote and hold office. These new constitutions also had to be approved by Congress.
3. Disenfranchise former Confederate officials: The Southern states were required to disenfranchise former Confederate officials and military officers from holding any public office. This was to prevent them from regaining political power and perpetuating their discriminatory practices.
4. Guarantee equal protection under the law: The Southern states were required to guarantee equal protection under the law for all citizens, regardless of race. This meant that African Americans could not be denied the right to vote or hold office, and they had to be given the same legal protections as White citizens.
5. Accept federal military rule: The Southern states were placed under federal military rule until they met these conditions. This meant that the military would be in charge of enforcing these new requirements and ensuring that the Southern states complied with the new laws. The Reconstruction Acts were a crucial part of the process of rebuilding the country after the Civil War. They were designed to ensure that the Southern states would not repeat the mistakes of the past and that all citizens would be treated equally under the law. While the process of Reconstruction was far from perfect, it helped pave the way for the full citizenship rights of African Americans. The Reconstruction Acts also laid the groundwork for the civil rights movement of the 20th century, which sought to further extend and protect the rights of all citizens.
Troop Protection and Slavery
Northern troops protected polls for Black voters until the election of 1877. Under the compromise of 1877 the Democratic Party yielded the Presidency with promise of no further intervening of southern affairs by Republicans. Union troop removal broke the remaining safeguard freed Blacks had, Democrats proceeded to restrict the rights of Black Americans by implementing subjective literacy tests, poll taxes, and residency requirements. The “Jim Crow” era of the South would begin with the protection of Union troops being repealed.
The Emancipation Proclamation was on paper intended to free all slaves. However, this legislation in practice was ineffective if not physically enforced by force of arms. Former slaves were funded by the government as free laborers, soldiers, farm hands, and camp residents during the war. As reconstruction began in the southern states it was clear to northern authorities that slavery would not simply go away due to the 13th amendment. “Slavery would not simply die; it would have to be killed.” Slavery as an institution was deeply rooted in the way of life of the South. Heavy government involvement was implemented to maintain the power of slave holders. Throughout the war many Americans took notice of the need for government involvement to maintain the institution of slavery. In the reconstruction era emancipation would also require ongoing government action.
The Civil Rights Act of 1866 was the first United States federal law to define citizenship and affirm that all citizens are equally protected by the law. It was mainly intended, in the wake of the Civil War, to protect the civil rights of persons of African descent born in or brought to the United States. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 came about during a time of change in American history. It came after other historical events such as the Civil War, the end of slavery, and the Reconstruction Era. The 39th Congress of the United States of America felt the government should have a strong presence in the reconstruction of the South. After the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment, they felt the need to also award citizenship to all people born in America.
Civil Rights Act
The Civil Rights Act of 1866, when passed and ratified, would grant all people who were born in America, other than Native Americans, their citizenship. The author of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 was United States Senator Lyman Trumbull and Congressman James F. Wilson. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 also said that any citizen has the same right that a White citizen has. Rights such as, to make and enforce contracts, sue and be sued, give evidence in court, and inherit, purchase, lease, sell, hold, and convey real and personal property. Additionally, the act guaranteed to all citizens the “full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the security of person and property, as is enjoyed by White citizens” Persons who denied these rights on account of race or previous enslavement were guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction faced a fine not exceeding $1,000, or imprisonment not exceeding one year, or both.
President Andrew Johnson did not share Congress’ view of heavy governmental presence in the southern states. President Johnson, a southerner himself before his presidency, felt that each state in the former confederacy should be able to make and enforce their own rules when it came to Reconstruction. On March 22, 1866, President Johnson explained his concerns about the bill to congress and refused to sign the bill into law.
On April 9, 1866, Congress was able to override President Andrew Johnson’s veto of the Civil Rights bill due to the 2/3 voting law. When the Civil Rights Act arrived on his desk, Johnson refused to sign it. He had always been a firm believer in the rights of states to regulate their own affairs. For the first time in history, Congress mustered enough votes to overturn a presidential veto and enacted the law anyway. It was the first of numerous veto overturns that came during the years of Reconstruction (1865–77), as Congress and the president squared off over how to restore the Union.
However, members of Congress worried that the Act did not give enough constitutional power to enact and uphold this law. They worried that, with no power backing, that Congress could not properly protect the citizenship of African Americans in the courtroom or with further legislation. Congress began meeting to establish the Fourteenth Amendment, the second of three Reconstruction Amendments, to help establish this citizenship.