Constitution Day, September 17th, celebrates the anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution, which occurred on September 17, 1787. Each year, JCCC has a Constitution Day event to commemorate this important day in history.
Come stop by the CoLab and Fountain Square tomorrow, from 11am-1pm to celebrate. There will be cookies and copies of the Constitution.
This is also a great day to reflect on the history of voting as outlined in the Constitution.
- 1789 – When the Constitution took effect, it stated that states had the right to determine who was eligible to vote. It was generally limited to white males who owned land.
- 1870 – The 15th Amendment was ratified, ensuring the right to vote could not be denied based on “race, color, or previous condition of servitude” (Native Americans, however, were not granted the right to vote until 1924).
- 1920 – The 19th Amendment guaranteed women the right to vote.
- 1943 – Chinese immigrants were given the right to citizenship and to vote by the Magnuson Act.
- 1964 – The 24th Amendment prohibited Congress and the states from implementing a poll tax or other types of tax for federal elections.
- 1965 – The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was designed to eliminate polices that denied citizens the right to vote based on race and other characteristics.
- 1971 – The 26th Amendment lowered the minimum voting age from 21 to 18.
Voting is a right and a privilege that various groups have fought to obtain and fought to protect throughout this country’s history. Don’t let their efforts go in vain! Let’s Crush the Vote JCCC!
