Chapter 15 Laws/Acts

APUSH

Civil Rights Act of 1866

Passed to respond to the Black Codes. Declared African Americans to be citizens of the United States and gave the federal government power to intervene in state affairs to protect the rights of citizens. Johnson vetoed the act but congress overrode him.

14th Amendment

Created by the Joint Committee of Reconstruction. It was a new amendment to the constitution that explained everyone born in the United States, and was naturalized is automatically a citizen and deserves all the privileges and immunities of being a United States citizen. There were no requirements (ex; being a white citizen). Everyone had equal treatment.

Ex parte Milligan

Created by congressional radicals to stop the Supreme Court from interfering with their plans. Made military tribunals unconstitutional places for civil courts and threatened the system of military government the radicals were planning for the south.

Treaty of Washington

Fish forged the agreements that provided an neutral third party to accept. At the end Britain expressed their regret for the "escape" of the Alabama from England.

Enforcement Acts of 1870 & 1871

Also known as the Ku Klux Klan Acts. It prohibited the states from discriminating against voters just because of their races. Federal governments were given power to superses the state courts a prosecute people that violated the law. The president was allowed to use military to protect civil rights and to suspend the rights of habeas corpus when violations of the rights were really bad.

Habeas Corpus

A legal document that allows someone to challenge their imprisonment if held unlawfully or if they did nothing wrong

Civil Rights Cases of 1883

Court ruled that the fourteenth amendment prohibited state governments from discriminating against people because of race but did not restrict private organizations from doing so, Railroads, hotels, theaters, and other workplaces could legally practice segregation

Cumming v. County Board of Education

Court ruled that laws establishing separate schools for white students were valid even if there were no comparable schools for african americans

Williams v. Mississippi

Voided the grandfather laws and Validated the literacy test. It Displayed a general willingness to let the southern states define their own suffrage standards as long as there were no evasions to the fifteenth amendment.

Lincoln's 10% Plan

If 10 percent of the number of voters took a loyalty oath in any state they could set up their own state government. Lincoln created the plan in an attempt to extend freedom to african americans. Louisiana, Arkansas, and Tennessee all approved the plan right away and were able to be their own state.

Wade-Davis Bill

A bill created by radical republicans to create a reconstruction plan. It was passed by congress. It authorized the president to appoint a provisional governor for each conquered state who were able to create their own state constitutional conventions. White males had to pledge their allegiance to the union. They used the Ironclad oath to make sure nobody was involved in fighting for the confederacy.

Ironclad Oath

Oath that made men pledge swearing the person had never taken up arms against the united states and fought for the confederacy. It was created by radical republicans.

Restoration

Johnson's plan for reconstruction. He created this plan soon after he just took office. it was very similar to the Wade-Davis Bill. In each state a provisional governor would be appointed, they would ratify the thirteenth amendment, repudiate the confederate and state war debts, and offered a pardon to southerners who would take an oath of allegiance.

Black Codes

States were enacting this law in the south. It was designed to give substantial control over freed african americans. Local officials were allowed to apprehend unemployed african americans, fine them, and make them work for them to pay back the fine. African Americans were only allowed to take jobs other than as a plantation worker or domestic servant.

15th Amendment

Forbade the states and federal government to deny the right to vote to any citizen on account of "race, color, or previous condition of servitude"

Tenure of Office Act

Passed because the congressional radicals wanted the president to stop interfering with their plans. It made sure the president wasn't allowed to remove civil officials from office without the Senate's consent. It was mainly created to protect the Secretary of War: Edwin M. Stanton

Command of the Army Act

Created by congressional radicals to stop the president from interfering with their plans. It prohibited the president from issuing military orders except through the command of the general of the army (at the time it was Grant) who could not be relieved or assigned elsewhere without consent of the state.

Civil Rights Act of 1875

A federal effort to mandate school integration and bring the races together. They wanted to get rid of segregation. The republican government of reconstruction was replaced by southern democrats and they had to stop the efforts to promote integration.

Compromise of 1877

Complex. Hayes was already on record favoring withdrawal of the troops. Southern democrats asked for more from Hayes like appointing southerns to the cabinet and having control of different areas.

Specie Resumption Act

Created to crush the greenback movement for good

Grandfather laws

Permitting men who could not meet the literacy and property qualifications to be enfranchised if their ancestors had voted before reconstruction began, Barring descendants of enslaved people from the poles and allowing poor white men to access them. Resulted in the loss of black voters.

Jim Crow laws

Laws restricting the franchise and segregation schools. An elaborate system of segregation reaching into almost every southern life. African americans and white people could not ride in the same railroad cars, sit in the same waiting rooms, use the same washrooms, eat in the same restaurants.African american access was limited and they couldn't even be patients in the hospital

Emancipation Proclamation

Abolishment of slavery everywhere (especially in the former confederacy)

13th Amendment

Created the emancipation proclamation which abolished slavery