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The Influence Of Voting Rights In The United States

342 Words2 Pages

African Americans had a hard time in the south during the 1900s. The obstacles that A.A. had to endure was not be able to vote due to the color of their skin. Other factors was poll taxes, literacy tests, and bureaucratic restrictions that also played a part in denying them the right to vote. As a result, very few African Americans were registered voters, and they had very little, if any, political power, either locally or nationally.
Three Important Points
1. The murder of voting-rights activists in Mississippi and the attack by state troopers on peaceful marchers in Selma, AL, gained national attention and persuaded President Johnson and Congress to initiate meaningful and effective national voting rights legislation. The combination of public revulsion to the violence and Johnson 's political skills stimulated Congress to pass the voting rights bill on August 5, 1965.
2. …show more content…

The legislation, which President Johnson signed into law the next day, outlawed literacy tests and provided for the appointment of Federal examiners (with the power to register qualified citizens to vote) in those jurisdictions that were "covered" according to a formula provided in the statute.
3. In addition, Section 5 of the act required covered jurisdictions to obtain "preclearance" from either the District Court for the District of Columbia or the U.S. Attorney General for any new voting practices and procedures. Section 2, which closely followed the language of the 15th amendment, applied a nationwide prohibition of the denial or abridgment of the right to vote on account of race or color. The use of poll taxes in national elections had been abolished by the 24th amendment (1964) to the Constitution; the Voting Rights Act directed the Attorney General to challenge the use of poll taxes in state and local

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