Amendments and Laws Critical to the Struggle for Suffrage
The 13th Amendment to the Constituition
Ratified December 6, 1865
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
The 14th Amendment to the Constitution
Ratified July 28, 1868
Article I: 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. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. (Article II gave voting rights to males only)
The 15th Amendment to the Constitution
Ratified February 3, 1870
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
The 19th Amendment to the Constitution
Ratified August 18, 1920
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
The 24th Amendment to the Constituition
Ratified January 23, 1964
The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Signed into law July 2, 1964
outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, required equal access to public places and employment, and enforced desegregation of schools and the right to vote. It did not end discrimination, but it did open the door to further progres
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Signed into law July 2, 1965
It outlawed the discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War, including literacy tests as a prerequisite to voting. This “act to enforce the fifteenth amendment to the Constitution” was signed into law 95 years after the amendment was ratified.
Information from the LWV Ohio website
In celebration of the suffrage centennial, LWVO has partnered with Ohio Humanities to develop the LWVO Woman Suffrage Reading List. It is a compilation of media materials for all ages about the history of woman suffrage; suffrage leaders; race and the women suffrage movement; and current issues related to democracy and elections.
Click here to download the LWVO Woman Suffrage Reading List.
We had our first event, “Commemorating the Centennial of Women’s Suffrage”, on August 28 at the Ohio History Connection in Columbus. The event featured humanities scholars who spoke about the woman’s suffrage movement, challenges faced by early women leaders, and why suffrage still matters today. Click here to download a printable copy of the scholarly discussion guide provided to all attendees at the event.
