The Twenty-seventh Amendment

"No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of Representatives shall have intervened."

No law that would pay a political official an income cannot be put into effect until after there has been another election. The purpose of this amendment is to make sure members of Congress don't give themselves a pay raise without first allowing people to vote (indirectly) on it.

This amendment only controls how and when raises for Congressmen are implemented, but it does not control pay increases. Today it has turned into an excuse to interpret Congress's routine salary decreases as unconstitutional.

http://www.lifeofthelaw.org/2013/01/heard-of-the-27th-amendment-congress-just-violated-it-again/

I think this amendment is one of the hardest ones to understand, but this article gave me some information on how Congress can sort of warp laws in their favor. Also, apparently what revived this proposed amendment 200 years in the making was a college student named Gregory Watson who wrote a paper proposing that it could still be ratified (a paper he got a C on). He launched a letter-writing campaign  in 1983 to convince state legislatures to finish the process, and the latest amendment to the US Constitution was born in 1992. 

The Twenty-sixth Amendment

Section 1.

"The right of citizens of the United States, who are 18 years of age or older, to vote, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of age."

Section 2.

"The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

Section 1.

United States citizens age 18 or older cannot be denied the right to vote by the US, any state, or any person on account of their age.

Section 2.

Congress has the right to enforce this amendment under appropriate law.

Without the younger generation's votes, Hillary would have been in extra trouble in 2016's election. Her supporters relied heavily on the young democrats to help break the glass ceiling, but this election had a low turnout for young voters. In 18-29-year-old voters, Trump got 37% of the vote while Hillary earned 55%.This election had the fourth-lowest turnout in young voters for a republican nominee since 1972.

During World War II in 1942, Franklin Roosevelt lowered the minimum age for the military draft to 18, when the minimum voting age was still 21. 18-20-year-old men were legally old enough to go to war but not vote until 1971 when this amendment was passed. Another accomplishment that is taking decades too long is lowering the drinking age to 18. I think a majority of Americans would agree that if someone is old enough to fight for our country and vote for our President, they should legally be able to have a beer. 

The Twenty-fifth Amendment

Section 1.

"In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President."

Section 2.

"Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress."

Section 3.

"Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President."

Section 4.

"Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office."

Section 1.

The Vice President will become President if the current President is not able to serve, dies, resigns, or is removed from office.

Section 2.

If the Vice President is not able to serve, the President may choose a new Vice President who must be voted for and approved by Congress.

Section 3.

The President is allowed to make the Vice President the Acting President with a written declaration, one when the period begins and one when it ends. 

Section 4.

If necessary, the Vice President and members of the cabinet can declare the President unfit to carry out the duties of Presidency. The President may then assert his ability to serve to Congress, and in return the Vice President and Congress are able to submit another declaration against the President. If this is the case, Congress would have to reach a 2/3 majority vote that the President is unfit for office. 

(This section has never been used).

This amendment has only been invoked a few times since its passage in 1967. The most famous usage of the 25th amendment was when Nixon resigned from office. In the aftermath of an Arab oil embargo, gas rationing, and the Watergate scandal, he resigned since impeachment was very likely.

https://www.lewrockwell.com/2005/08/history-news-network-staff/what-is-the-25th-amendment-and-when-has-it-been-invoked/

I was curious on what occasions this amendment has been invoked, and this article gave me all the answers. There is definitely a trend of Presidents during a surgery, illness, or emergency, turning over temporary Presidential powers to the Vice President but insisting that they did not want to invoke the 25th amendment. That's not how it works!!!

The Twenty-fourth Amendment

Section 1.

"The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax."

Section 2.

"The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

Section 1.

The right of all citizens of the United States to elect representatives in national, state, local, and primary elections, shall not be denied, and poll taxes are not allowed.

Section 2.

Congress will enforce these provisions under appropriate law if needed.

This 1942 cartoon sums it up well. African Americans (especially in the south) faced serious discrimination and were faced with voting barriers, such as literacy tests, that made it difficult for them to vote for the nominee that would work to end the acts of injustice. Poll taxes were priced just enough to stop poor people from voting. Even though everyone was supposed to be entitled to a vote under the 15th amendment, people found loopholes to tailor to their political advantage and the poor's disadvantage. Until the 24th amendment that is....

http://totallyhistory.com/24th-amendment-to-the-constitution/

This article gave me a good idea of the events leading up to this amendment, and it was not an easy victory to achieve. From the period spanning from 1890 to 1964 when the 24th amendment was finally ratified, the idea was considered, drafted, reconsidered and disregarded over and over again. I learned that Harry S. Truman created the President's Committee on Civil Rights, to work towards equal rights, including investigating the poll tax. (He was my great-great uncle by marriage!!!) The election of JFK sparked reconsideration of abolishing the poll tax, and he decided instead of trying to pass legislation again, adding a Constitutional amendment would be the best course of action. Now everyone can vote for free, the way it should be! Don't take that right for granted!

The Twenty-third Amendment

Section 1.

"The District constituting the seat of government of the United States shall appoint in such manner as the Congress may direct:

A number of electors of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were a state, but in no event more than the least populous state; they shall be in addition to those appointed by the states, but they shall be considered, for the purposes of the election of President and Vice President, to be electors appointed by a state; and they shall meet in the District and perform such duties as provided by the twelfth article of amendment."

Section 2.

"The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

Section 1.

Washington DC may appoint as many electors in the Electoral College as if it were a state, but no more than the least populous state. The status and position of these electors is equivalent to all other electors, and they will be expected to carry out the same responsibilities under the 12th amendment.

Section 2.

Congress is allowed to enforce this amendment under appropriate laws.

The District of Columbia's lack of voting representation in Congress has been controversial since the capital's founding. Proposed additions to the Constitution would repeal the 23rd amendment in favor of complete voting rights in DC. Making the district into a state is also up for debate.

https://www.dcvote.org/10-myths-about-district-columbia

This website taught me a lot about the District of Columbia, which I admit I didn't know anything about yesterday. For example, Congress agreed to pay for 70% of DC's Medicaid costs, and their prisons and courts. In return, the President appoints DC's local judges and is in charge of DC's prison and court system.

The Twenty-second Amendment

Section 1.

"No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once. But this article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this article was proposed by the Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term."

Section 2.

"This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several states within seven years from the date of its submission to the states by the Congress."

Section 1.

No one is eligible to be president more than twice (four terms), and anyone who was not elected but filled in for the President for at least two years is not eligible to be elected more than once. However this amendment does not apply to anyone who is in office when the 22nd amendment is ratified.

Section 2.

This amendment will be ineffective within seven years if 3/4 of states do not approve it.

A lot of people believe that "no man is good three times" in office, and others are strong supporters of repealing the Presidential term limit. I think it completely depends on the person in office. Once in a blue moon, a President comes along that I wish 

we could keep for an extra term or two.(Obama):-)

Not-so-fun fact: 

Franklin Roosevelt was the only US President to have served more than two terms. Elected four times, he was President from 1933 to 1945. He died of a brain hemorrhage on April 12th, 1945, only 83 days into his fourth term. 

The Twenty-first Amendment

Section 1.

"The eighteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed."

Section 2.

"The transportation or importation into any state, territory, or possession of the United States for delivery or use therein of intoxicating liquors, in violation of the laws thereof, is hereby prohibited."

Section 3.

"This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by conventions in the several states, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the states by the Congress."

Section 1.

We take back the eighteenth amendment!!! (prohibition of alcohol). 

Section 2.

This was what the eighteenth amendment said: selling, making, or bringing liquor into the United States is prohibited.

Section 3.

This amendment will be ineffective unless ratified by our states within seven years.

The Prohibition-era lasted a whole 15 years before the twenty-first amendment was ratified on December 5th, 1933, officially repealing the eighteenth amendment. The prohibition failed to keep people sober and ended up costing the nation millions, so the eighteenth amendment simply lost popular support over the 15-year span. Just in 1933 alone, 43 states passed laws providing for action on the proposed repeal.

 prohibition trivia questions:

-Was it illegal to drink during the prohibition era?

No, the manufacture, sale, and transportation of liquor was forbidden, but not drinking.

-Drug stores continued to sell alcohol as "medicine." True or false?

True! Drug stores were allowed to sell "medicinal whiskey" that was used to treat anything you could think of, kind of like how marijuana is treated now.

The Twentieth Amendment

Section 1.

"The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and Representatives at noon on the 3d day of January, of the years in which such terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of their successors shall then begin."

Section 2.

"The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day."

Section 3.

"If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.”

Section 4.

"The Congress may by law provide for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them."

Section 5.

"Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of October following the ratification of this article."

Section 6.

"This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several states within seven years from the date of its submission."

Section 1.

After an election year, the President and vice president's terms will end on January 20th, and Congressmen will end their terms on January 3rd.

Section 2.

Congress begins every new term on January 3rd, unless they pass a law that says otherwise.

Section 3.

If the President is no longer able to serve their term, the Vice President is next in line. The Vice President can have temporary Presidential authority if the President is unable to fulfill the duties of the office.

Section 4.

In the case of death of anyone in the Electoral College prevents them from electing a President, Congress may choose.

Section 5.

Self explanatory.

Section 6.

This amendment needs a 3/4 acceptance vote from the states within 7 years to be ratified. 

To be honest, I just learned what a lame duck is. The original definition is an ineffectual or unsuccessful person or thing. In American politics, a lame duck is a political official in their final period of office, after the election of their successor. This cartoon represents the impending doom of Donald Trump following the presidency of Barack Obama. 

Before this amendment was passed, the President and Vice President took over office on March 3rd of the following year, but they decided to move the date up to January 20th. At the end of 1932, FDR was elected President and many banks were collapsing due to the Great Depression. Current President Herbert Hoover was the sitting "lame duck" who had little ability to take action on the banking crisis, and FDR still had a few months to wait. It was decided that moving the term starting date up to January would be beneficial that year and in the future. 

The reason the 20th amendment determined who would take over office if the President died is because of the assassination attempt of FDR in 1933. It happened on February 15th, in Miami, Florida, when Roosevelt was not yet in office but was the president-elect. The man who shot at FDR and four others was Giuseppe (Joe) Zangara, who successfully shot Anton Cermak, the mayor of Chicago. Cermak died 19 days later. Roosevelt was unharmed although he may have been the intended target.

The Nineteenth Amendment

"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

The right of United States citizens to vote will not be denied by anyone because of their sex. 

WOMEN CAN VOTE!!!!!!

Women's suffrage (the right to vote) in the United States was established slowly, over a course of decades locally, and then nationally in 1920. We can thank women's suffragists like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucy Stone for fighting for women to be treated as an equal sex. This illustration is one of my favorites of the women's suffrage movement because it really highlights the stupidity of women being denied the right to vote. Generations before this amendment was passed, women across the United States could give birth to males eligible to vote when they become of age, but were not given that right themselves.

This is a nice infographic that shows a basic timeline for women's suffrage in the United States. Soon it will be a whole century after all American women were given the right to vote, and today a higher percentage of women exercise their right to vote than men. 

The Eighteenth Amendment

Section 1. "After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all the territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited."

Section 2. "The Congress and the several States shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

Section 3. "This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of the several States, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the States by the Congress."

Section 1. One year after the states approve of this amendment, selling, making, or bringing liquor into the United States will be made illegal. 

Section 2. Congress can pass any needed and appropriate laws in order to enforce this article.

Section 3. This amendment must be ratified by 3/4 majority of the states in the next 7 years, or else it will become invalid.

http://www.voanews.com/a/lawless-movie-review/1498984.html

This is a short article that describes the plot of the movie Lawless, a 2012 movie starring Shia LaBeouf and Tom Hardy that takes place during the Prohibition era. The prohibition of alcohol took effect in 1919 and ended up being the only amendment repealed from the Constitution later in 1933. In the meantime, people found ways to get away with drinking alcohol, and criminals made a lot of money selling alcohol to those people. In the movie Lawless, the Bondurant brothers work as "bootleggers," making and selling moonshine in Franklin County, Virginia. Eventually they get tangled up with the corrupt cops and things get crazy. In the making of this movie they did a great job making the time period believable and I wish I could show a movie clip!!! I definitely recommend this one.

There were two types of people that spoke their opinion about the alcohol prohibition - those that demanded the right to drink whatever they want, and those that were against the consumption of alcohol in the first place. You can guess which argument had the most supporters and ultimately won.

Probably the biggest consequence of the 18th amendment was the vast organized crime that came of it. The sale of alcohol began to be controlled by the Mafia and other gangs, and Chicago's infamous Al Capone earned an estimated $60 million annually from his bootlegging business.

The Seventeenth Amendment

"The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each state, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each state shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the state legislatures.

When vacancies happen in the representation of any state in the Senate, the executive authority of such state shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies: Provided, that the legislature of any state may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct."

The United States Senate will have two Senators representing each state for six years, elected by the citizens. These electors must have the same qualifications of the most numerous branch of the state legislatures. 

If any Senator is no longer able to serve, the executive authority of that state can issue a writ of election to nominate a replacement temporarily, until the people fill the vacancy by election.

The concept of the people electing Senators sounds great at first glance. It gives Americans the idea that they have control over the federal government, however many people are in favor of repealing the 17th amendment. Firstly, it is seen as unfair to have each state represented by the same amount of senators despite population. Secondly, the House was supposed to represent the people and the Senate was supposed to represent states as states, not the people in those states. People also argue that this amendment took away the ability of state legislatures to have a say in national-level policy. 

This debate has been around since the amendment was first introduced. The Republicans that introduced and pushed for the 17th Amendment argued that the cure for the republic’s problems was more democracy. The other side argued that the original purpose of the U.S. Senate was to protect the sovereignty of the states.

 "Election of senators by the people: If United States Senators are elected by the people instead of by the legislators the people should be permitted to vote. The constitutional method of electing senators has worked well for one hundred and twenty-two years. Why experiment?" Speech of Hon. Chauncey M. Depew of New York in the Senate of the United States Tuesday, January 24, 1911.   

The Sixteenth Amendment

"The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration."

Congress is allowed to collect income taxes from whatever source, without need to share the revenue with states, and the census can't be used as a basis for distributing taxes.

http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2016/11/27/5-shocking-facts-about-federal-income-tax.html

This news article taught me a few new things about federal income tax, like that our current tax rates are historically low. The United States actually ranks 26 out of 28 most taxed developed countries in the world. That makes our current rate seem low. 

Before the passage of the 16th amendment in 1913, most of the federal government's income came from taxes collected on imported goods. The 16th amendment was originally proposed as a way of collecting indirect taxes on unearned income. Apparently wages and salaries were exempt from taxation under the 16th amendment at first, and it was not anyone's original intention to put taxes on income and wages. Now we don't give paying taxes a second thought for the simple reason that we don't want to be sent to jail.

The Fifteenth Amendment

Section 1.

"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."

Section 2.

"The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

Section 1.

The right of American citizens to vote should never be denied based on their race, ethnicity, or the fact that they are a former slave.

Section 2.

Congress has the right to appropriately enforce this ruling.

This piece of art represents the three "types" of black men that were finally able to vote thanks to the 15th amendment. The first man wearing tattered clothing probably represents a former slave, the second man in the nice clothing is most likely a free man from the North, and the last man would be a soldier. The message of this picture is that no matter what color you are, where you come from, or how much money you make, no government should be able to strip a citizen's right to vote.

Thomas Mundy Peterson was the first African American to take advantage of the right to vote, on March 31st, 1870 in New Jersey. The citizens of his town Perth Amboy, New Jersey gave him a medallion 14 years later with Abraham Lincoln engraved on one side, and "Thomas Peterson - First colored voter in the U.S. under the provisions of the 15th amendment" engraved on the other side. His mother was a slave and he worked as a custodian at a school, which was later named after him in 1989. He also became the first black American to serve on a jury.

The Fourteenth Amendment

Section 1.

"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."

Section 2.

"Representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the executive and judicial officers of a state, or the members of the legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such state, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such state."

Section 3.

"No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability."

Section 4.

"The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any state shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void."

Section 5.

"The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article."

Section 1. 

All people born or naturalized in the United States are citizens of the United States and the state where they live. No state can pass any law that strips privileges and immunities away from citizens, or deprive any person from life, liberty, or property without fair treatment through the judicial system. Everyone has to be treated equally under the law.

Section 2.

The House of Representatives must be divided up according to the population of each state. If a state denies an eligible voter (including freed slaves) the right to vote, they can lose representatives in Congress.

Section 3. 

You cannot be a part of any state or United States government, or any military branch if you participated in the rebellion, but that rule can be lifted by Congress if both the houses approve with a 2/3 majority vote. Also no one who has previously taken an oath into office is allowed to engage in activities to harm the country.

Section 4.

Citizens are allowed to hold and maintain a personal debt for any reason, but even if the money is used to fund rebellion or harmful acts towards a state, their state cannot assume that debt.

Section 5.

Congress has the right to enforce each one of these provisions. 

Section 1 of this amendment declares that all people born in the United States are citizens, which means that the children of illegal immigrants are considered United States citizens if they were born here. The term "anchor baby" is used assuming that illegal immigrants have babies in order to stay in the country. Donald Trump has made remarks about anchor babies not being real citizens, which is clearly not true based on the law. In 2012, it was estimated that 4.5 million children under 18 living here with parents that are illegal immigrants. I hope that we don't all become desensitized to his offensive comments, but mostly I hope he doesn't deport any citizen children's parents. Despite his threats, I don't think he would actually have a wall built or try to repeal the birthright process. 

Racial profiling is defined as targeting individuals based on their race or ethnicity in the belief that a certain race is more likely to engage in criminal activity. This can be categorized as unreasonable search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment and a denial of the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection clause. Even if some people believe we live in a post-racism era, racial profiling happens everyday and is mostly an issue between citizens and police officers. We rely on the police to protect us from harm and promote justice in our country, but unfortunately racist incidents have made many citizens' distrust grow for law enforcement.

The Thirteenth Amendment

Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party   shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within   the United States, or any place subject to their   jurisdiction.

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this  article by appropriate legislation.

Slavery and involuntary servitude is abolished, except as a punishment for a crime, and Congress has the right to enforce this ruling.

The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1st, 1963. Up until September 1962, the main focus of the Civil War had been to preserve the union. After the Emancipation Proclamation was issued, freeing the rest of the slaves became a war aim. Though many slaves had been declared free due to the proclamation, the Senate decided to pass the 13th amendment to formally abolish slavery for good. Unfortunately Black Codes (laws passed by Southern states in 1865 and 1866)continued to subject some black people to involuntary labor. Although our country still has a ways to go, the Emancipation Proclamation certainly paved the way for African Americans to fight for their freedom.

Activist Martin Luther King Jr. was the leader of the African American Civil Rights Movement and his legacy will continue to be celebrated even after racial discrimination is no longer an issue in the United States. Although I don't know when that day will come. It breaks my heart that a century after the Emancipation Proclamation, a man that spent his whole life fighting for peace and equality was murdered because of the color of his skin. I know that no one is born a racist, and that's why it breaks my heart even more to see racism and discrimination being passed down to the next generation. All we can do is continue to do good to one another and educate each other about acceptance, and no one can vote on that.