On February 3, 1870, the United States took a monumental step toward equality by ratifying the ๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ฆ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ, declaring that the right to vote “๐ โ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ก ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐… ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ก ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐, ๐๐๐๐๐,๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ข๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ก๐ข๐๐.”
Created to ensure newly freed African American men had the right to vote, the 15th Amendment ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐. Many states in the North and South, including Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia, quickly circumvented the Constitution, passing laws to strip African American men of the right to vote, requiring things like poll taxes, literacy tests, and enacting grandfather clauses.
When women gained the right to vote in 1920 with the 19th Amendment, Jim Crow laws across Southern states prevented Black women from exercising their right to vote. The struggle for voting rights persisted, culminating in the ๐๐จ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐๐, which sought to eliminate discriminatory voting practices.
Yet, challenges remain. The 2013 Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder invalidated a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, leading to the implementation of restrictive voter ID laws in several states, including Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, and Wisconsin. For women, who often change their names upon marriage or divorce and may not change their voter registration records, these exact-match ID laws are particularly onerous.
Today, approximately ๐๐% ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ง ๐ฏ๐จ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ค ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ซ๐๐งt ๐ ๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ-๐ข๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐, compared to about ๐๐% ๐จ๐ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ -๐๐ ๐ ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ณ๐๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ.
As we re๏ฌect on the ๐๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ง๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ฒ of the 15th Amendment, it’s crucial to recognize that ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฑ๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ง๐โ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ญ๐ ๐๐จ๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ฎ๐๐ฌ. Organizations like ๐ฝ๐๐๐๐น๐๐ ๐๐๐ play a vital role in assisting voters who face challenges due to restrictive ID laws. By supporting such efforts, we honor the legacy of those who fought tirelessly for equality and ensure that ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ณ๐๐งโ๐ฌ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ข๐๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐.
Learn more in Episode 2, Voting Rights, of our award-winning docuseries Stand UP, Speak OUT: The Personal Politics of Women’s Rights.