The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments A look at the Reconstruction Amendments

Amendments The United States Government in Washington D.C. decided to help the South and make some changes that would help the freed slaves and make America a better place to live. They passed three important Amendments.

What is an AMENDMENT!?

A change to the Constitution Amendment A change to the Constitution

13th Amendment The 13th Amendment declared that slavery would not be allowed to exist in the United States. It made slavery illegal.

The 14th Amendment gave citizenship to African Americans! A person’s race could not be a reason to deny them citizenship. 14th Amendment

14th Amendment The 14th Amendment declared that states could not limit the rights of citizens. States could not take away life, liberty(freedom), or property without due process of the law.

Due Process What does it mean by due process in the 14th Amendment? Due Process means that the Government must follow the Constitution and all of the Bill of Rights in it before it can take away anything from you.

Due Process In other words, the government must give a person a fair and fast trial before they can take away a person’s rights!

15th Amendment The 15th Amendment gave all men the right to vote, no matter what their skin color was or if they had been enslaved.

13th, 14th, 15th Amendments 13th Amendment - It made slavery unconstitutional and illegal. 14th Amendment - It stated that states could not take away the rights of citizens without due process of the law. 15th Amendment - It allowed all men to vote, no matter their skin color.

Amendment Fever! Directions - You and your group must work together. Your goal is to guess the correct Amendment that is being violated or broken

#1 Bernie lives in the South after the Civil War. As he is trying to leave the plantation where he used to be a slave, his plantation owner Billy Bob stops him and says, “I paid for you, you are my slave, you must stay!” What Amendment is Billy Bob breaking?

ANSWER! 13th Billy Bob can not tell anyone to be a slave! Slavery became unconstitutional with the 13th Amendment.

#2 A old old man named Larry wobbles up to the voting booth. Betty, the person that works at the voting place says, “Go away old man, you can’t vote here!” What Amendment is Betty breaking?

ANSWER 15th Amendment. According to the 15th Amendment, all men have the right to vote no matter of age or race.

#3 It is 1865, and the Sheriff in a small town arrests Steve, a former slave, for stealing food from the market. The Sheriff throws him jail and never gives him a trial. What TWO Amendments is the Sheriff breaking?

ANSWER The 6th and the 14th Amendments! The 6th Amendment says you must have a trial if you are accused of a crime. The 14th Amendment says you must have due process (which includes a trial) before they can take anything away such as your liberty (freedom).

#4 A man decides that he needs people to work at a factory, but he can’t pay them. He decides to force his employees to work without paying them a single dollar. What amendment is the man breaking?

ANSWER The 13th Amendment - The man cannot force people to work for free!

#5 John came home from work one afternoon and noticed that all of his property was gone. He saw a note and it said, “We have taken your property because you owe us money. Thanks, U.S. Government.” He had nobody to contact to get the stuff back. What Amendment did the Government break?

ANSWER The 14th Amendment - Nobody is allowed to take your property without due process. This means that if the government wants to do something, you have the right to go to court. It is up to the Government to prove their case, not for you to prove your innocence of a crime.

Conclusion 13th Amendment - Ended Slavery 14th Amendment - Due Process Due Process - the government must respect all of your legal rights not just some. 15th Amendment - All men can vote

Amendment Flipbook! DIRECTIONS: You should have four note cards. The first note card is your cover. On the second note card, you will write 13th Amendment on one side, and write what it is and draw a picture to along with it on the other side. Do the same with the rest of the notecards for the 14th and 15th Amendments!