Suffrage and Civil Rights Chapter 6 Section 3

Key Terms Gerrymandering Injunction Preclearance

15th Amendment The effort to extend franchise to African Americans Ratified 1870 Declares the right to vote can not be denied to any citizen because of “race, color, or previous servitude.”

History African Americans were systematically kept from the polls White supremacists used violence Others used other types of pressure If an African American registered to vote he could be denied credit in a store

Formal Methods Literacy tests Whites would manipulate the test to disenfranchise African Americans Poll Taxes, White primaries, Gerrymandering also used Gerrymandering- drawing electoral district lines in order to limit a voters strength or a particular party or group

Democratic Domination of the South Only Democrats nominated candidates In southern states political parties were private associations They refused African Americans memberships

Court Rulings Outlawed white primaries in 1944 If party holds a primary they must follow the 15th Amendment 1960 Supreme court outlawed gerrymandering that it violated the 15th amendment

Early Civil Rights Led by martin Luther King in the late 1950’s Acts of 1957 and 1960 Civil Rights Act of 1957 Created the Civil Rights Commission 1957 Attorney General had power to investigate polling problems Civil Rights Act of 1960 appointed federal referee’s

Civil Rights Act of 1964 Outlawed discrimination in job related matters Forbid literacy requirement Injunction- is a court order that compels or restraining the performance of some act by a private individual or public official Any violation would be contempt of court

Selma Alabama Dr. King mounted a voter drive in 1965 Efforts met with violence by local whites civilians, police and state police Civil rights worker was murdered Nation saw it on television and was outraged President Johnson urged Congress to pass new and stronger legislation

Voting Rights Act Voting Rights Act of 1965 made 15th amendment truly effective It applied to all elections Originally only suppose to last for five years. Congress extended it 1970, 1975, 1982, 2006 Present version effective for 25 years (2031) 1965 law challenged constitutionality of poll tax, law suspended literacy test

Preclearance Voting act of 1965 impose more restrictions Preclearance- the act declared that no new election law, and no change in existing election laws could go into effect until they were pre-cleared.

The voter-examiner and Preclearance Provisions of 1965 applied to six entire states Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia and 40 counties of North Carolina

Supreme Court found The Voting Rights Act to be a proper exercise of power granted by the 15th Amendment.

Amendments to the Act 1970 extended the law for another 5 years Provided for 5 years no state could use a literacy test There were also residency provisions 1975 Law extended for 7 years Ban on literacy tests is permanent Preclearance provisions and voter examiner were broadened

Since then they have also covered any state with a voting population that belongs to a “language minorities” These groups include Spanish, Native Americans, Asians, Native Alaskans This addition expanded laws coverage to Alaska, Texas and to several counties in 24 state All ballots must be printed in English and the minority language involved

1982 extended the basic features for 25 years 1992 the laws language was changed that it applied to any community with a minority-language population of 10,000 or more Today eight entire states still remain subject to Voting Rights Act Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas

Court Challenge Utility District v Holder in 2009 Small Texas Water District challenged the law Argued many significant changes had happened in race relations and the law was no longer needed and unconstitutional Court decided 6 – 1 because the water district had no history of race-based discrimination it was not subject to preclearance provisions

Clearly there will be more challenges to the act in the future