Black Voices Article

Over nine decades, efforts to amend the U.S. Constitution to recognize men’s and women’s rights have faced major challenges.

As early as 1789, the Constitution granted states the power to set voting requirements mostly limited to property-owning and tax-paying White males. A few states allowed free Black men to vote and New Jersey included unmarried and widowed women who owned property to vote. It wasn’t until 1870, when the 15th Amendment was ratified, that Black and White men had the right to vote.