The 15th Amendment primarily addressed voting rights for which group?

The 15th Amendment primarily addressed voting rights for which group?

• A. Black men
• B. Women
• C. Native Americans
• D. Immigrants

Answer: (A)

The main idea being tested is how the 15th Amendment protects the right to vote from being denied because of race. Ratified in 1870 during Reconstruction, it prohibits denying someone the vote on account of race, color, or their previous status as a slave. This was aimed specifically at ensuring Black men who had been enslaved could participate in elections after emancipation, building on the abolition of slavery and equal citizenship established by earlier amendments. Because the amendment mentions race rather than gender, it did not grant voting rights to women—that achievement came later with the 19th Amendment. It also doesn’t target Native Americans or immigrants as a group; while some of those groups faced their own barriers to voting, the 15th Amendment’s primary focus was protecting Black men’s suffrage in the aftermath of slavery.

The main idea being tested is how the 15th Amendment protects the right to vote from being denied because of race. Ratified in 1870 during Reconstruction, it prohibits denying someone the vote on account of race, color, or their previous status as a slave. This was aimed specifically at ensuring Black men who had been enslaved could participate in elections after emancipation, building on the abolition of slavery and equal citizenship established by earlier amendments.

Because the amendment mentions race rather than gender, it did not grant voting rights to women—that achievement came later with the 19th Amendment. It also doesn’t target Native Americans or immigrants as a group; while some of those groups faced their own barriers to voting, the 15th Amendment’s primary focus was protecting Black men’s suffrage in the aftermath of slavery.