The Civil Rights Act Of 1866 - 1403 Words

On April 19, 1866, the US Congress passed the first ever Civil Rights Act. It gave black Americans the right to own their own property, to have legal protection in business, and to take people to court. The act was also the first time that black Americans were called citizens of the United States. This meant that black Americans would have the same rights and privileges as all other US citizens. Another Civil Rights Act was passed in 1875. This act made it illegal to discriminate on the basis of race in public places, such as restaurants. In 1883, the Supreme Court ruled that the 1875 act was unconstitutional on the basis that businesses had the right to choose which customers they served and which they could ignore. This allowed businesses that provided public facilities to choose to exclude black people. On June 1, 1909, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was formed. It became the most important civil rights organization fighting for the rights o f black people in the United States. It is still active today and has a membership of about half a million. On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court passed a judgment that changed the course of civil rights in the United States. In the case of Brown v. the Board of Education, the judges on the Supreme Court declared that racial segregation in education was unconstitutional and therefore against the law. This decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson case of 1896. Shortly after noon on Monday May 17,Show MoreRelatedThe Civil Right Act Of 18661520 Words   |  7 Pages Racial discrimination in granting rights and privilege between the veterans of white Americans and black African American is a major issue since seventeenth century. From the very beginning of America White Americans used to treat African Americans as slaves. Slavery in the United States began soon after English colonists first settled Virginia and lasted until the passage of the Civil Right Act of 1866. The nineteenth century saw a hardening of institutionalized racism and legalRead MoreThe Civil Rights Act Of 18661225 Words   |  5 PagesProclamation freed all slaves in the U.S. After the Civil War, the withdrawal of the federal troops from the south, and the Fourteenth Amendment was what they emancipated. The reconstruction lasted 12 years from 1871 until 1883 when the Supreme Court ruled the Civil Rights Cases in which some Acts were invalid because they addressed social as opposed to civil rights. Although Congress responded with legislation that led to the C ivil Rights Act of 1866, States kept on the books laws that continued theRead MoreProtecting Fundamental Rights Of Citizens888 Words   |  4 PagesProtecting Fundamental Rights of Citizens â€Å"A civil right is an enforceable right or privilege, which if interfered with by another gives rise to an action for injury† (â€Å"Civil Rights†). In his article â€Å"To Begin the Nation Anew: Congress, Citizenship, and Civil Rights after the Civil War,† Robert J. Kaczorowski discusses the relationship between civil rights and the constitution laws of the 1860s. The federal government creating amendments and laws â€Å"that conferred on all Americans the preciousRead MoreSignificance Of The Reconstruction Act861 Words   |  4 Pages Reconstruction Acts – after the civil war four bills were passed by the United States Congress in 1867 in order to bring the country back together, providing the process and criteria that would allow the Southern states with the exception Tennessee, readmission into the Union. (Ohio Civil War Central, 2015) The significance of the Reconstruction act was the division of the south into five military districts; loyal freed male now allowed to vote, ex-confederate denied rights to hold office couldRead MoreThe Civil Rights Of The United States Essay1653 Words   |  7 Pagesfounding of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People  (NAACP), World War II, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and several supreme court cases, that African American finally achieved the right to vote3. Even after these several legal advancements and many different civil rights movements the playing field, after many attempts to be leveled out, was still uneven and the day by day struggles continued. Even today, 396 years later, there are still racial bias and inequalities towardRead MoreReconstruction : The Failure Of Reconstruction1529 Words   |  7 Pagesend. Reconstruction began in 1865 right after the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln created a plan for Reconstruction that called for Reconcilia tion. Abraham Lincoln believed that preserving the Union was way more important than punishing the South. On the other hand, Robert E. Lee urged southerners to reconcile with the North and reunite as Americans. Abraham Lincoln proposed the Ten Percent Plan which offered southerners amnesty, or official pardon, for all illegal acts supporting the rebellion. The southernersRead MoreChallenges Of Radical Reconstruction748 Words   |  3 PagesFollowing the end of the Civil War in 1865, the United States faced many political challenges. One of these challenges would include the reintegration of the Confederate states that had seceded from the Union. There were many questions and issues with exactly how these states should be reintegrated back into the United States. Another challenge that quickly came to the forefront, after the Civil War, was how to handle the millions of freed African American slaves. This challenge would entailRead MoreHow Important Was the Reconstruction Period of 1865-1877 in the Development of African American Civil Rights797 Words   |  4 PagesThe end of the civil war should’ve marked a major turning point for the position of African Americans. The north’s victory marked the end of slavery and in addition, the fourteenth and fifteenth amendment guaranteed African Americans full civil and political equality. However, the end of the civil war and the beginning of the reconstruction era was seen a ‘false dawn for the slaves in the former confederacy and border states. 1865 saw the creation of the freedman bureau to provide food, shelterRead MoreThe Legacy Of Lincoln And Andrew Johnson1017 Words   |  5 Pagesof Lincoln s policies prevailed the Congressional elections of 1866 in the North, which enabled the Radicals to take control of policy, remove former Confederates from power, and enfranchise the freedmen. In 1876 the presidential vote was veer confused and forcing the congress to make the final decision. Andrew Johnson announced plans of the Reconstruction which was referred his stanch unionism and his firm belief of states’ rights. President Johnson was an inept politician who lost all his advantagesRead MoreThe American Civil War helped to save the nation by rejoining Union Confederate and as result of800 Words   |  4 PagesThe American Civil War helped to save the nation by rejoining Union Confederate and as result of the Emancipation Proclamation, most African American slaves were declared freed men. However, during the American Reconstruction, the lack of political unity was still very apparent as the South saw Reconstruction as being defeated humiliatingly and thus sought vengeance through the slaves it had lose. Although many slaves did receive their freedom, Reconstruction caused an increase in the white supremacy