Author-Brian Wilkins ‘20 Section-Research Papers
INTRODUCTION While not included in the first ten
shortly after the war’s end Abraham Lincoln was shot and killed. This act of treason set Lincoln’s
amendments to the United States Constitution,
Reconstruction plans back because Lincoln's
the Fourteenth Amendment serves an import-
successor, Andrew Johnson, was discovered to
ant role in present-day America. The Fourteenth
be opposed to many of the values that Abraham
Amendment forbids states from denying an per-
Lincoln supported during his Presidency. Ex-
son “life, liberty, or property, without due process
pressing much displeasure towards the creation
of the laws. ”1 This last clausse is an important, if
of the Fourteenth Amendment, Andrew John-
not the most important, part of the Amendment,
son tried to use his Presidential powers to veto
because it changes many of the aspects surround-
the creation of the law. Much to the President’s
ing the definition of citizenship. As a result of
displeasure, the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fif-
the Supreme Court’s interpretation, the Four-
teenth Amendments passed. With the mandatory
teenth Amendment has greatly expanded civil
ratification in place for reintegrating Confeder-
rights to encompass a wider range of people.
ate states, the amendments now known as the
The Podium | Research Papres
The Evolving Amendment
Reconstruction Amendments, were put into place Known in history as the man who abol-
in the American legal system.2 In spite of these progressive amendments, the Jim Crow laws, poll
ished slavery in the United States, Abraham Lin-
taxes, and grandfather clauses were created to
coln was an important and pivotal advocate for
restrict the amendments. These loopholes in the
the expansion of civil rights. He left the country
amendments were adopted by many of the south-
on a “liberal” path that granted the previously
ern states and allowed for the subordination of
owned slaves many basic human rights that they
African Americans under the jurisdiction of the
did not possess before. Unfortunately however,
law.
Volume I • Edition I
February 2016
9
FOUNDER’S INTENT
