Redefining Rights: Reconstruction-Era Black Perspectives on the Fourteenth Amendment

Abstract

The task of interpreting the Fourteenth Amendment has challenged the scholarly community and United States judiciary for decades. This thesis proposes a novel approach, arguing for scholars and judicial bodies to consider, and potentially prioritize, black Reconstruction-era perspectives on the Fourteenth Amendment. A content analysis exploring records of black legal figures, political activists and the black press (1866-1883) unveils historical black communities’ expansive interpretations of the Fourteenth Amendment. Advocating for both negative rights and positive rights, Reconstruction-era black communities contended that the Fourteenth Amendment imposed an obligation upon the federal government to affirmatively uplift black populations across the country. Focusing on the practical consequences of federal policies combating discriminatory conditions, black advocates viewed the Fourteenth Amendment as empowering federal protections addressing black communities’ plight. Uncovering historical black perspectives on the Fourteenth Amendment, this thesis adds to political and legal scholarship while highlighting the possibilities of a reformed Fourteenth Amendment jurisprudence.