Question

Another Victory for Republicans as Fifteenth Amendment Passes Which fact of life for African Americans in the 19th century limited the impact of the event described in the headline?

A. Public schooling for African Americans was often inferior to that for whites.
B. African Americans feared terrorist groups like the Ku Klux Klan.
C. Literacy tests were a condition of voting in many Southern jurisdictions.
D. There were few job opportunities for African Americans in the South.

Answer 1

Literacy tests and poll taxes, not directly prohibited by the Fifteenth Amendment, significantly limited the impact of the amendment for African Americans, effectively disenfranchising many until the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The correct answer is option C.

Step-by-step explanation:

The fact of life for African Americans in the 19th century that limited the impact of the event described by the headline 'Another Victory for Republicans as Fifteenth Amendment Passes' is best represented by option C: Literacy tests were a condition of voting in many Southern jurisdictions. Despite the Fifteenth Amendment prohibiting the denial of the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude, it did not address other discriminatory practices like literacy tests and poll taxes. These mechanisms were designed to disenfranchise African Americans and were not federally outlawed until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was signed by President Lyndon Johnson.