PEOPLE: Black History Month 2023 Celebrates Amendments to the U.S. Constitution as they guarantee equality and protection of civil rights
AGN.News Team
February 7, 2023
WASHINGTON (AGN.News) – The United States Constitution in 1789, as established by the “Founding Fathers”, was ratified by the then-colonies. Equality and rights were guaranteed for some of us but not all of us.
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. All laws enacted in cities, counties, states, territories, and by the federal government must comply with the entirety of the Constitution of the United States.
Republic by the “Founding Fathers”
These “Founders of the Republic” – as Congressman James M. Beck called them in 1902 – were tasked with unifying the Thirteen Colonies. They oversaw the War of Independence from Great Britain.
They also crafted a framework of government for the newly declared nation called the United States. They were fully aware of the future expansion of future states to come – though unknown at the time.
These “Founders of the Republic” organized the three branches of the United States government: The Executive branch (President), the legislative branch (Congress), and the judicial branch (Supreme Court). All laws would have to meet the constitutional tests to become law.
Over time these three branches would interact to defend the rights of all citizens. When bills are voted into law, the courts could rule them unconstitutional. When laws are passed that are legally acceptable, the president could sign them into law.
Preamble of the U.S. Constitution
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
“Founding Fathers” were Founders or Framers
U.S. Senator Warren G. Harding coined the phrase “Founding Fathers” in his keynote speech at the Republican National Convention in 1916.
On March 4, 1921, when Harding was inaugurated as the 29th President of the United States, he repeated the phrase ‘Founding Fathers’ in his inauguration speech.
The Framers included the Signers of the Declaration of Independence (1776), the Articles of Confederation (1781), and the United States Constitution.
“Founding Fathers” immortalized
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, and Benjamin Franklin have been immortalized throughout time by being minted on U.S. currency.
These “Founders” knew times would change … because times were changing as they lived. Those changing times would bring Amendments to United States Constitution.
Amendments to United States Constitution
There have been several Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Notable is the Fourteenth Amendments which directly addressed and secured the civil rights of African Americans.
The Fourteenth Amendment (Amendment XIV) to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. Often considered as one of the most consequential amendments would include a degree of equality and civil rights not previously guaranteed.
It addresses citizenship rights and equal protection under the law and was proposed in response to issues related to former slaves following the American Civil War.
Constitutional Rights Guaranteed for all
The Fourteenth Amendment’s first section includes several clauses including the Citizenship Clause and the Equal Protection Clause.
The Citizenship Clause provides a broad definition of citizenship, nullifying the Supreme Court’s decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), which had held that Americans descended from African slaves could not be citizens of the United States.
The Due Process Clause prohibits state and local governments from depriving persons of life, liberty, or property without a fair procedure. The Supreme Court has ruled this clause makes most of the Bill of Rights as applicable to the states as it is to the federal government, as well as to recognize substantive and procedural requirements that state laws must satisfy.
The Equal Protection Clause requires each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people, including all non-citizens, within its jurisdiction. This clause has been the basis for many decisions rejecting irrational or unnecessary discrimination against people belonging to various groups.
Section 1: Citizenship and civil rights
“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
This amendment formally defines United States citizenship and also protects various civil rights from being abridged or denied by any state or state actor. Abridgment or denial of those civil rights by private persons is not addressed by this amendment.
The Supreme Court has held that the Fourteenth Amendment nullifies and makes void all state legislation, and state action of every kind, which impairs the privileges and immunities of citizens of the United States, or which injures them in life, liberty or property without due process of law, or which denies to any of them the equal protection of the laws.”
Civil rights of Black people protected
The framers of the Fourteenth Amendment wanted these principles enshrined in the Constitution to protect the new Civil Rights Act from being declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court and also to prevent a future Congress from altering it by a mere majority vote.
Section 1 was also in response to violence against Black people within the Southern States. The Joint Committee on Reconstruction found that only a Constitutional amendment could protect Black people’s rights and welfare within those states.
The U.S. Supreme Court stated in Shelley v. Kraemer (1948) that the historical context leading to the Fourteenth Amendment’s adoption must be taken into account.
The court said: “The historical context in which the Fourteenth Amendment became a part of the Constitution should not be forgotten. Whatever else the framers sought to achieve, it is clear that the matter of primary concern was the establishment of equality in the enjoyment of basic civil and political rights and the preservation of those rights from discriminatory action on the part of the States based on considerations of race or color. […] [T]he provisions of the Amendment are to be construed with this fundamental purpose in mind.”
African American Rights Today
Black History Month is a special time for African Americans. As citizens of the United States, many African Americans and/or their family members have had their rights infringed upon by states or state actors including those entrusted with both the means and the power to protect and serve their community.
Even though courts across America have reminded both federal and state actors of the need to protect and serve all communities equally, that has not always been done.
Civil and Human Rights Protections
Broad protections for civil and human rights of African Americans and all Americans should be viewed as constitutional rights that are guaranteed, not at the discretion of the state actor, but by the U.S. Constitution.
While this month is celebrated and set aside as Black History Month, protecting the constitutional rights of Black Americans as well as all Americans should be guaranteed every month.
Rights Protected by Governments
African Americans all across America are proud of the men and women who put themselves in harms way protecting all communities, including communities of color. They are demonstrating their commitment to protecting all citizens regardless of their color.
Today, the majority of African Americans are celebrating the Amendments to the U.S. Constitution as they guarantee equality in life, liberty, education, protection of human rights, and civil rights.
Many Proud “Founding Fathers”
Many of the “Founding Fathers” would rejoice at seeing the phrase “all men are created equal” being applied all across the land and benefiting all of us not just some of us.
Many of the “Founding Fathers” would be proud of the Constitution they enacted and how it has been amended to adapt to the times. Many of them wanted to end slavery but came up short. They would be proud of the many descendants of their servants who are achievers and public servants.
Some of the “Founding Fathers” would be proud of the men and women of color who are protecting the equal rights of every American regardless of color, something they wanted but could not achieve.
#GoldOverBlack
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