Black men had
voted in large numbers across the South in the 1868 presidential
election, and they had been enfranchised by popular referenda
that autumn in Iowa and Minnesota. They remained disfranchised,
however, in 11 of the 21 Northern and Western states and the
five Border States, a combined area where one-sixth of American
blacks lived. Northern blacks petitioned Congress for a
constitutional amendment for equal suffrage.
In January 1869,
the National Convention of the Colored Men of America
met in Washington, D.C., with the aim of advocating
suffrage for all black men in the United States and the
education of former slaves. A
committee of twelve called on
President-elect Ulysses S. Grant, offering their
support and best wishes and urging him to be vigilant in the
fulfillment and administration of equal rights. He pledged as
president to uphold equal protection under the law.
Spurred also by the resurgent strength of the Democratic
Party, Republicans of the outgoing 40th Congress
began crafting in the winter of 1868-1869 a constitutional
amendment for equal manhood suffrage. Ideally, it would
enfranchise Northern black men and protect the voting rights of
black men in the South from repeal by future state legislatures,
thereby creating conditions for a viable two-party system in the
South and help secure implementation of the Reconstruction
Acts. Congressional Republicans were initially divided,
however, on the language and scope of the amendment. Radicals
wanted to bar the federal and state governments from
disfranchising voters because of race, property, literacy, and
other classifications. Moderates believed that the amendment
should be limited to suffrage for black men, with states
retaining authority over other voting qualifications. Some
Republicans from New England and the Far West favored state
literacy and nativity qualifications for voters (aimed at Irish
and Chinese immigrants).
On January 30, 1869, the House
passed a
resolution, 150-42, submitted by Republican George Boutwell of
Massachusetts to amend the Constitution to forbid the federal
and state governments from denying the vote to citizens based on
“race, or color, or previous condition of slavery.” Its
language was almost identical to the final form of the Fifteenth
Amendment. Harper’s Weekly editor George William Curtis
praised Boutwell’s proposal as “another of those
great measures which commend it to the confidence of all
thoughtful men, and to the gratitude of posterity.” He
explained that it was better to protect equal suffrage through a
constitutional amendment than a federal law.
The Senate began debating a constitutional amendment drafted
by the Judiciary Committee and introduced by Republican William
Stewart of Nevada that was similar to Boutwell’s proposal,
except that it also banned denying public office based on race,
color, or previous status as a slave. However, on February 9,
1869, the full Senate narrowly
approved, 31-27, a
proposed amendment introduced by Republican Henry Wilson of
Massachusetts that prohibited the federal and state governments
from discriminating in voting or office holding based on “race,
color, nativity, property, education, or [religious] creed.” In
an
editorial, George William Curtis emphasized the
educational aspect of Wilson’s amendment, and cautioned the
House not to rush to judgment on the measure, but to consider
seriously how best to ensure an educated electorate. The editor
professed little faith in educational tests for voters, but was
unconvinced that the amendment should ban all educational
requirements in all circumstances.
On February 15, 1869, the House defeated the Senate bill, but
four days later
passed, 140-33, a version of the
amendment introduced by Republican John Bingham of Ohio that was
nearly identical to Wilson’s proposal except that it applied
only against the states, not the federal government. Some of
the “aye” votes may have come from congressmen hoping to prolong
debate between the two chambers and eventually defeat the
amendment. In the meantime, on February 17, the Senate passed
the Stewart’s moderate version of the amendment, 35-11 (with 20
senators absent). The Joint Congressional Committee accepted
the Senate measure while dropping the reference to office
holding, thus essentially returning to Boutwell’s proposal
originally passed by the House. Backed by large Republican
majorities, the compromise resolution
passed the
House, 143-43, on February 25, and the Senate, 39-13 (with 14
absent), the next day.
In less than a month, Congress had come full circle on the
suffrage amendment. The House originally passed a moderate
version and the Senate passed a radical one. The House rejected
the Senate resolution and then approved its own radical
amendment, while the Senate passed a moderate one. The
House-Senate committee adopted a moderate version, which was
basically the first House-approved proposal. Although the final
form of the Fifteenth Amendment was moderate compared to some of
the other versions, it nevertheless presented a significant
change in the U.S. Constitution. Section One of the Fifteenth
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.” Section Two authorizes Congress to enforce the
amendment “by appropriate legislation.” |
1)
February 6, 1869, p. 85
illustration, “The
National Colored Convention in Session at Washington, D.C.” Theodore R. Davis
2) February 6, 1869, p. 81
news item, “The Colored
Convention”
3)
February 13, 1869, p. 99, c. 4
“Domestic
Intelligence” column
4)
February 13, 1869, p. 99, c. 3-4
editorial, “The
Suffrage Amendment”
5)
February 27, 1869, p. 131, c. 4
“Domestic
Intelligence” column
6)
February 27, 1869, p. 131, c. 2-3
editorial,
“The Suffrage and Education”
7)
March 6, 1869, p. 147, c. 4
“Domestic
Intelligence” column
8)
March 13, 1869, p. 163, c. 4
“Domestic
Intelligence” column
|