1866 CIVIL RIGHTS ACT AND ITS BLUNDERS

The United States Congress enacted the Civil Rights Act on April 9th, 1866 (despite being vetoed by President Andrew Johnson), leading to the declaration that all individuals born in the country were to be citizens despite their race, color, and any other conviction. The Act was ratified in 1870 and became a major steppingstone for the African Americans who had been fighting for equitable rights and recognition as being human . As US citizens, they were allowed to administer contracts, take somebody to court and be sued, and provide court evidence. They were also allowed to inherit, sell, and lease property. Individuals who were convicted of denying these rights to African Americans were to be charged with an offense. They would be charged a fine of up to USD 1,000 or face jail time of a year. However, the upsurge of white supremacists’ groups like the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), Redshirts, and Whitecappers destabilized the effectiveness of the Act leading to a massive failure of guaranteeing African Americans their legal rights as citizens of the United States. These hate groups continued to torture, segregate, kill, and lynch African Americans who were constitutionally equivalent to them.

Ultimately, the Act failed to protect African Americans and other people of color from institutional racism. President Andrew Johnson maintained his stance that the white race was more superior to…