15th Amendment

Definition

The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1870) prohibited governments from denying U.S. citizens the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Related terms

Black Suffrage: Refers to black people's right to vote.

Reconstruction Era (1865-1877): Period after the Civil War during which the Southern states were reorganized and reintegrated into the Union.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States.