Question

how did many Southerner states work around the voting rights guaranteed in the 15th amendment?

poll taxes prevented poor citizens from being able to vote

grandfather clauses gave citizens the right to vote if their grandfather have been able to vote in elections prior to reconstruction

literacy test were put into place requiring citizens to read difficult passages from legal documents in order to be able to vote

all of the above

Answer 1

All of the above.

Many Southern states implemented various discriminatory practices to circumvent the voting rights guaranteed by the 15th Amendment, which was ratified in 1870 and aimed to protect the voting rights of African American men. Specifically:

- **Poll Taxes**: These required citizens to pay a fee in order to vote, which disproportionately affected poor individuals, including many African Americans and some poor whites.

- **Grandfather Clauses**: These allowed individuals to vote only if their grandfathers had been eligible to vote before Reconstruction, effectively excluding many African Americans whose grandfathers had been enslaved and thus unable to vote.

- **Literacy Tests**: These tests required voters to demonstrate reading and writing abilities by interpreting complex legal documents, which were often applied subjectively by white registrars and used to disenfranchise Black voters.

These measures collectively aimed to suppress the African American vote and maintain white supremacy in the political system.