Question

In 1870, many black Americans were poor and illiterate. Many southern states required voters to pay a poll tax and/or pass literacy tests before voting. As a result, many blacks were not allowed to vote. Did states with policies like these violate the 15th Amendment? ______________ Why or why not?

Answer 1

Step-by-step explanation:

States that required literacy tests and or pay poll tax did not violate the fifteenth Amendment, as this amendment established that voters should not be discriminated against by race or color. It did not say anything about their literacy or economic level. The truth is that they used tax payment and writing tests in order to leave African American men out of the polls without violating the Amendment.

It was not until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that literacy tests were banned and therefore the African American men could vote.