On February 26, 1869, Congress proposed a 15th amendment to the Constitution of the United States, the first section of which provided: The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall In less than one year, ratification was completed and on March 30, 1870, Secretary of State Fish certified that it had become a part of the Constitution.39 40 Southern Resistance The Negro was enfranchised. He held many important posts in the governments formed under the four Reconstruction Acts of 1867. Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina had Negro lieutenant governors. The speaker of the House in Mississippi and the superintendent of public education in Florida were Negroes. Between 1869 and 1901, 22 Negroes were sent from the South to Congress. Hiram R. Revels and Blanche K. Bruce served in the Senate representing Mississippi. Of the 20 Negroes who were elected to the lower House, South Carolina sent 8; North Carolina 4; Alabama 3; and Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi and Virginia, I each. The Negro also secured access to the judicial process. In an effort to eliminate the legal disabilities suffered by the Negro both under slavery and the Black Codes, Congress in 39 16 Stat. 1131. All 10 Radical Reconstruction governments were among the ratifying States. Ohio, N.J., and Del. ratified after having first rejected the amendment. N.Y. "withdrew" its assent after first having ratified. Calif., Ky., Md., Oreg., and Tenn. rejected the amendment. See Corwin, op. cit. supra note 28, at 47. 40 Act of Mar. 2, 1867, 14 Stat. 428; act of Mar. 23, 1867, 15 Stat. 2; act of July 19, 1867, 15 Stat. 14; act of Mar. 11, 1868, 15 Stat. 41. 41 Franklin, op. cit. supra note 14, at 316. the Civil Rights Act of 1866 declared that all persons would have the same right "to make and enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, and give evidence." 42 Several Radical Reconstruction governments enacted similar legislation. Arkansas, in 1866, and Mississippi, in 1867, guaranteed equal treatment for the Negro in State courts, and in time other States eliminated their constitutional and statutory disabilities on Negro participation. These provisions were to remain in effect when other Reconstruction legislation fell at the hands of the Redeemers.* 44 43 While Radical leadership brought about changes in the fundamental law of the land, resulting in national suffrage for the Negro from 1870 on, it failed to cope with mounting southern opposition to the exercise of the franchise by Negroes. The general organization of the Ku Klux Klan was strengthened in the spring of 1867 and it became a powerful organization with "dens" in many parts of the South. As its first Grand Wizard, General Nathan Bedford Forrest said in August 1868 that the Klan was opposed to Negro suffrage under any and all circumstances. When the Klan failed to achieve its goal of white supremacy and fell into the hands of local terrorists, many of its prominent members resigned. In 1869, the Grand Wizard announced the formal disbandment of the Klan, but it continued to exist as a secret society and stepped up underground activities to prevent the Negro from exercising his 42 14 Stat. 27 (1866). 43 Johnson, op. cit. supra note 10, at 68, 131 (1919); Wharton, The Negro in Mississippi 1865–1890 at 93 (1947). ** Johnson, op. cit. supra note 10, at 69, 131. Redemption is C. Vann Woodward's term for the period following the withdrawal of Federal troops from the South in 1877. The leaders of the white South during this year credited with delivering the South from the evils of Reconstruction were known similarly as the Redeemers. See generally, Woodward, Origins of the New South, 1877-1913, ch. 1 (1951). The influence of this group came to an end probably by 1890 with the Populist movement and the agrarian revolt. 45 vote and enjoying other rights. In Tennessee, Alabama, and several other States, the legislatures had enacted “Ku Klux laws" in an effort to bring the secret societies under control. They did not succeed. By 1870, the entire Radical Reconstruction program-less than three years old— was on the brink of collapse in many parts of the South and the rights of freedmen were seriously jeopardized. It became clear that, without additional Federal action, the new constitutional amendments would be merely words on a piece of paper. In the weeks following the ratification of the 15th amendment, pressure mounted for the enactment of enforcement legislation." Opposition was vigorous, many asserting that the Federal Constitution did not give Congress the power to implement the amendments. In May 1870, a law was passed. It declared that all citizens of the United States who are otherwise entitled to vote in any State election, municipality or other subdivision, shall be entitled to vote without distinction of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. States setting up prerequisites for voting were required to give all citizens an equal opportunity to meet them. Persons hindering, obstructing, or exercising control over qualified electors in the exercise of their franchise were made subject to fine, imprisonment, or both. Violators were to be prosecuted in the courts of the United States, and Federal officials-ranging from special commissioners to Supreme Court Justices-were to facilitate the law's enforcement." In the Presidential election of 1868, General Ulysses S. Grant defeated his Democratic opponent, Horatio Seymour, former Governor of New York, by a margin of 306,000 votes, with the Negro vote probably deciding the election. In 45 Horn, The Invisible Empire: The Story of the Ku Klux Klan 1866-71, at 414 (1939); Simkins, op. cit. supra note 11, at 285, 288; Franklin, Reconstruction After the Civil War 155-63 (1961). 46 Cong. Globe, 41st Cong., 2d Sess. 3661–68 (1870). 47 Act of May 31, 1870, 16 Stat. 140. 9 48 the winter of 1870-71, while Congress debated additional legislation to curb the Klan, President Grant took stock of the situation. He had been optimistic when, earlier in the year, Secretary Fish certified that the 15th amendment had become a part of the Constitution. Its ratification, he said, "completes the greatest civil change and constitutes the most important event that has occurred since the nation came into life.' But by December he had to admit that "a free exercise of the elective franchise has by violence and intimidation been denied to citizens in exceptional cases in several of the States lately in rebellion and the verdict of the people has thereby been reversed." " On February 28, 1871, the Second Enforcement Act became law. Under it, supervisors of elections were appointed by Federal courts and interference with the discharge of their duties became a Federal offense. Federal courts were given jurisdiction over the election supervisors and their work.50 Before this law could be tested, a new session of Congress convened. Sentiment in favor of maintaining the new southern governments, by Federal force, if necessary, grew even stronger. There were reports of civil strife in many parts of the South. Riots in South Carolina confirmed the President's growing conviction that life and property were insecure and that the carrying of mails and the collection of revenue were endangered. In a special message to Congress he indicated his belief that the States' ability to meet the problem effectively was inadequate and his own powers might not be sufficient. He urgently recommended "such legislation as in the judgment of Congress shall effectually secure life, liberty, and property and the enforcement of law in all parts of the United States," 51 and issued a proclamation 48 9 Richardson, op. cit. supra note 2, at 4010. 49 Id. at 4050. 50 Act of Feb. 28, 1871, 16 Stat. 433. 51 9 Richardson, op. cit. supra note 2, at 4081. condemning the lawless elements in South Carolina and ordering them to disperse within 20 days.52 Congress responded. On April 20, 1871, it enacted the Third Enforcement Act. Because the primary purpose of the "Ku Klux Act," as it was commonly referred to, was to restrict the activities of secret societies such as the Klan, it forbade conspirators to go in disguise upon a public highway or upon the premises of another to deprive any person of equal protection of the law or equal privileges or immunities under the law. Any action under color of law which deprived persons of their rights under the laws or Constitution of the United States was also made subject to criminal sanctions. Its broad provisions prohibited conspiracies to overthrow the Government of the United States; to prevent the execution of its laws; to use force or threat to prevent any person from holding office or discharging the duties of any office under the United States; to deter any party or witness from testifying in any United States court; or to influence a juror in any United States court. The President was given authority to suppress violence resulting in the deprivation of constitutional rights if State authorities were either unable or unwilling to do so. In areas where unlawful combinations to obstruct Federal justice were "so numerous and powerful" as to be able to overthrow or defy the constituted governments, the President could suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus and proclaim martial law. 53 The President issued a proclamation calling public attention to the new legislation and warned that, while he would be reluctant to exercise the powers granted him, he would use them "whenever and wherever it shall be necessary to do so." In October, he suspended the writ in nine South Carolina counties which had been especially chaotic and violent in the summer of 1871.54 52 Id. at 4086-87. 53 Act of Apr. 20, 1871, 17 Stat. 13. 54 9 Richardson, op. cit. supra note 2, at 4088-89, 4090-92. |