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Voting Rights Amendments Notes

What are amendments?
Changes to a document, in this case the U.S. Constitution

Explain the amendments listed in the Bill of Rights.

Amendme Summary
nts
1 Freedom of speech, press, to assemble, religion, and petition.
2 Right to bear arms (own a gun)
3 Govt cannot force people to house soldiers
4 Privacy Rights. Govt must have a search warrant or probable cause to
search your property.
5 Rights of the accused. Plead the Fifth, Double Jeopardy, Eminent
Domain, No person can be charged with a crime unless the charges have
been brought by a grand jury.
6 Right to quick and speedy trial, right to a lawyer, due process, & right to
face my accusers.
7 Civil cases can be heard by a jury if the amount is $20+
8 No cruel or unusual punishment. No excessive fines or bail
9 Citizens have rights that are not listed in the Constitution.
10 Powers not listed in the Constitution belong to the states (and the
people)

Key Vocabulary
Suffrage: The right to vote

Disenfranchisement: Being deprived of a right or privilege, especially the right to vote

Civil Liberties: Individual rights protected by law from unjust governmental or other
interference

Poll Tax: Charging money to let someone vote, aimed at keeping the poor, specifically
former slaves, from voting

Explain the following amendments:

Amendm Summary
ent
Lawsuits Against States: It is impossible for the citizen of one state to sue another
11 state. (So, Salem cant sue Iowa)
12 Election of President and Vice President: (1804) Provides that members of the
electoral college (called electors), vote for one person as president and one
person as vice president.
 Abolished/prohibited slavery in the US. Made slavery illegal
13

This amendment stated that anyone born in the United States was a
citizen of the United States and that they had the same rights as any
14 other citizen of the United States. Made African Americans citizens. (Law
of soil, Law of Blood, Naturalization Process. )

This amendment stated that race could not be used as a reason for
15 taking away someones right to vote.

16 Income Taxes: Congress has the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes

17 Direct Election of Senators: The states have the power to directly elect senators to
represent them. (before this, the state legislature decided who the senators were)
18 Prohibition of Liquor: (1919) Forbade people to make, sell, or transport liquor.

Womens suffrage: This amendment gave women the right to vote and
19 made it illegal to discriminate against women voting.

20 Terms of President and Congress: Moves the date that newly elected presidents
and members of Congress take office close to election time. President: January
20th, Congress: January 3rd
21 Repeal of Prohibition: Repeals the 18th amendment.
22 Limitation of Presidents to Two Terms: No person can be elected president more
than twice.
23 Suffrage in the District of Columbia: Allows citizens of Washington D.C. to vote in
the presidential elections. However, they cannot vote for members of Congress.

This amendment said that poll taxes were illegal, and that failure to pay
24 a poll tax could not be a reason to take away someones right to vote.

25 Presidential Disability and Succession: If president is removed, dies, or resigns, the

vice president becomes president. The president fulfills a vice president vacancy, by a
majority vote of both Houses of Congress.

This amendment said that any United States citizen age 18 or older
26 could vote. Brought the voting age down from 21 to 18.

27 Congressional Pay Raises: Any increase in congressional pay does not go into
effect until after the next regular election of the House of Representatives.
1) What is a social movement?
A type of group action. They are large, sometimes informal, groupings of individuals
or organizations which focus on specific political or social issues. In other words, they
carry out, resist, or undo a social change.
2) How did the following amendments impact social movements?
Amendm Impact on Social Movements
ent
Slaves were considered property. They were not considered citizens, and so they
could not vote. While this amendment did not increase voting rights, it gave all
13 slaves their freedom. It was an important first step toward voting rights for former
slaves. (Ratified 1865)
Anyone who had been born a slave was a citizen of the United States. It also said
that state governments could not pass laws that limited U.S. citizens rights. The
14 U.S. Constitution now protected all U.S. citizens (including former slaves) from
state laws that discriminated against them because of their race. This meant that
African Americans and women could go to court when they believed that state
laws discriminated against them and violated their rights as U.S. citizens. (Ratified
1868)
Protected the right to vote for any male over the age of 21. It strengthened the
14th Amendment. The former slave states opposed the ratification of the 13th,
15 14th and 15th Amendments. They decided to try other ways, especially passing
new laws, to keep African-Americans from voting. For example, in Alabama,
African-Americans had to take a 68-question literacy test that had to be
answered completely and perfectly in a short time. If African-Americans taking the
test missed even one question, they could not register to vote. In Mississippi,
African-Americans were asked questions that had no correct answer, such as How
many seeds are in a watermelon? Failing to answer such questions correctly
meant that these U.S. citizens were not allowed to register to vote. (Ratified 1870)
The ratification of the 19th Amendment gave women power that they had not had
before. Beginning in the 1960s, women began to form interest groups to make
19 sure they had equal job opportunities, and other economic and social
opportunities. Women have also taken part in marches and protests for womens
rights. Today, more women than ever run for, and win, elected offices at all levels
of government. Several women have run for president and vice-president,
although no women have been elected president or vice president yet women
have also sued in court when federal and state laws discriminate against them
because they are women. (Ratified 1920)
Before the 24th Amendment, many states tried to charge people money (a poll
tax) to let them vote. This often kept minorities (especially African Americans in
24 the former slave states) or poor people from voting. The ratification of the 24th
Amendment allowed more minorities and poor people to vote because it made poll
taxes unconstitutional. One impact of this amendment is that candidates and
elected leaders now pay more attention to the concerns of the poor and minorities
because they know that these individuals can vote in elections. (Ratified Jan. 23,
1964)
Ratified in 1971, said that any United States citizen age 18 or older could vote.
Before 1971, the federal government and some states, only allowed people age 21
26 or older to vote. One impact of this amendment is that candidates and elected
leaders pay more attention to the concerns of young people because they know
that these young people can vote in elections. (Ratified 1971)

3) What is the Equal Protection Clause found in the 14 th Amendment?

The U.S. Constitution now required that states guarantee the same rights, privileges,
and protections to all citizens (including former slaves)

4) What did some states do to prevent African Americans from voting after the ratification of the
15th amendment?
Requiring Literacy Test Passing the Grandfather Clause
A written test used to decide If your grandfather or great
whether or not someone was grandfather voted then you had
eligible to register vote the right to vote.

5) How did some states feel about the ratification of the 15 th Amendment?
The states leaders said they were allowing people of all races who were properly
registered to vote, even though they made the registration process nearly
impossible for African-Americans. They also used the argument of states rights,
which meant that state leaders believed states could make their own laws for
elections and voting, even if they made it impossible for certain people to actually
register to vote.

6) Explain the following laws that were passed to protect the civil rights of minorities:

Said employers could not discriminate based on race or

Civil Rights Act of gender.
1964

Made racial discrimination illegal in voting laws

Voting Rights Act of
1965

Banned discrimination based on race or gender in selling

Civil Rights Act of or renting homes.
1968

7) What is the Equal Rights Amendment? Why is it not included in the constitution?
- This amendment would prohibit all discrimination based on gender
- The amendment was never ratified by the states