What does 14th Amendment mean in history?
Passed by the Senate on June 8, 1866, and ratified two years later, on July 9, 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment granted citizenship to all persons “born or naturalized in the United States,” including formerly enslaved people, and provided all citizens with “equal protection under the laws,” extending the provisions of …
Where did the phrase separate but equal originate?
The phrase was derived from a Louisiana law of 1890, although the law actually used the phrase “equal but separate”. The doctrine was confirmed in the Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision of 1896, which allowed state-sponsored segregation.
How did Plessy v Ferguson violate the 14th Amendment?
John H. Ferguson, at the Louisiana Supreme Court, arguing that the segregation law violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which forbids states from denying “to any person within their jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws,” as well as the Thirteenth Amendment, which banned slavery.
What is separate but equal supposed to mean?
separate but equal. The doctrine that racial segregation is constitutional as long as the facilities provided for blacks and whites are roughly equal.
Did the Supreme Court agree with Plessy?
On May 18, 1896, the Supreme Court issued a 7–1 decision against Plessy that upheld the constitutionality of Louisiana’s train car segregation laws.
What is the 14th Amendment to the Constitution?
The 14th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified on July 9, 1868, and granted citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States,” which included former slaves recently freed.
What is the opening sentence of the 14th Amendment?
The opening sentence of Section One of the 14th Amendment defined U.S. citizenship: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
What does Section 2 of the 14th Amendment mean?
Section 2 of the 14th Amendment removed this law from the Constitution, giving freed slaves full weight as citizens. The only adult male citizens who were denied the right to vote were those convicted of crimes.
Why did southern states have to ratify the 14th Amendment?
Some southern states began actively passing laws that restricted the rights of former slaves after the Civil War, and Congress responded with the 14th Amendment, designed to place limits on states’ power as well as protect civil rights. To be readmitted to the Union after the Civil War, southern states had to ratify the 14th Amendment.