Constitutional amendments and changes in the definition of American citizenship

The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments to the United States Constitution were ratified between 1865 and 1870, five years after the Civil War. These amendments, which dealt primarily with the issues of African Americans, people of color, and slavery, were added more than 60 years after the 12th amendment of 1804. The amendments are also known as the Reconstruction Amendments because they were crucial in the post-Civil War reconstruction of Southern America.

Slavery and forced labor were outlawed by the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, except for punishment for crimes. It was approved by the US Senate on 8 April 1864, and on 18 December 1865, it was incorporated into the US Constitution.

The Southern States, in particular, fiercely opposed the Fourteenth Amendment. The Federal Constitution was amended on July 20, 1868, stating that all people born or naturalized in the United States, including African Americans, are American citizens.

Due to their "race, color, or former condition of servitude," the federal and state governments were forbidden by the Fifteenth Amendment from denying citizens the right to vote. On February 3, 1870, it was ratified and included in the Federal Constitution.