Table of Contents
Foreword 11
Amendment Text and Explanation 14
Introduction 17
Chronology 24
Chapter 1 Historical Background on the Fifteenth Amendment
The Fifteenth Amendment Was Part of a "Second Constitution" for the United States George P. Fletcher 29
The Ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment Helped Former Rebel States Rejoin the Union Brooks D. Simpson 35
Ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment Is Simply Justice Benjamin F. Whittemore 45
Voting Rights Should Be Preserved for White Men of European Background James R. Doolittle 51
The Fifteenth Amendment Will Help Blacks Fulfill Their Potential as Americans Frederick Douglass 60
The Federal Government Must Enforce the Fifteenth Amendment's Guarantees Martin Luther King 65
Chapter 2 Challenging and Affirming the Fifteenth Amendment
Individual States Cannot Restrict the Fifteenth Amendment's Guarantees Edward D. White 75
States May Restrict Nonwhites from Voting in State Primaries Owen Roberts 87
States Cannot Restrict Voting in Primaries to Whites Only Stanley F. Reed 96
Congress Has the Right to Enforce the Fifteenth Amendment Earl Warren 103
Parts of the Voting Rights Act Are Unconstitutional Hugo Black 112
Chapter 3 Ensuring Voting Rights in Contemporary America
Indiana's Voter ID Law Threatens to Disenfranchise Some Voters Cynthia Tucker 120
Voter ID Laws Have Not Been Shown to Reduce Voter Turnout Jeff Milyo 124
States Continue to Find Ways to Restrict Voters Adam Cohen 128
Some Authorities Still Try to Stop African Americans from Voting Art Levine 132
Federal Officials Still Monitor Elections to Ensure Fair Voting Procedures Katherine Sayre 137
Appendices
A The Amendments to the U.S. Constitution140
B Court Cases Relevant to the Fifteenth Amendment 142
For Further Research 145
Index 149
