Final answer:
In the late 1800s, the federal government failed to enforce laws against discrimination and could not effectively prevent the Southern states from limiting African American voting rights. Southern states employed various methods, such as literacy tests, property qualification laws, and gerrymandering, to reduce black voting. Congressional efforts to enforce black voting rights in the South ended in 1891.
Step-by-step explanation:
In response to Southern attempts to limit African American voting in the late 1800s, the federal government failed to enforce laws against discrimination. Southern states quickly restricted African American voting by implementing literacy tests, requiring potential voters to interpret a section of the Constitution, and using property qualification laws, gerrymandering, and fraud to reduce black voting. The defeat of the Federal Elections Bill in 1891 ended congressional efforts to enforce black voting rights in the South.