EOTO Reconstruction Era: Civil Rights Act of 1875

The Civil Rights Act of 1875 was first introduced in 1870 by Charles Sumner, an abolitionist and radical Republican Senator from Massachusetts. He was one of the few white male politicians of his time who dedicated his career to supporting the abolition of slavery and advocating for black rights. This bill gave all citizens access to public accommodations such as theaters, restaurants, hotels, and forms of transportation regardless of skin color. Also, it frobade excluding any person from jury service based on their race and required all lawsuits brought under the Civil Rights Act to be tried in federal, not state courts. 

The Civil Rights act specifically stated, "That all persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall be entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theaters, and other places of public amusement; subject only to the conditions and limitations established by law, and applicable alike to citizens of every race and color, regardless of any previous condition of servitude." This shows how the ultimate goal of this act was to protect all United States citizen's, civil and legal rights post Civil War and slavery.

As expected many if not all the Southerners in the Senate did not approve of the bill, this caused great debate in the Senate. Hours were spent arguing with one another and even became heated at times when either side reused to back down and disregard their beliefs. These arguments were centered around whether Congress had the constitutional right to decide who the juries selected for state courts could be made up of. After many disputes and conversations among the Sentators, those who supported the bill agreed t drop one thing from it. They had decided to eliminate the portion that prohibited segregation in public schools, which would later go on to change the course of history. 

Sumner thought that the Civil Rights Act would be the most outstanding achievement of Reconstruction. He stated, "Very few measures of equal importance have ever been presented." Sumner wholeheartedly believed in his bill and that it would be extremely pivotal in U.S. history. Unfortunately, Sumner did not live to see what happened to his bill. In March 1874 he unexpectedly died due to a heart attack att only sixty-three years old. On his death bed Sumner said to his friend Frederick Douglass, "Don't let the bill fail, you must take care of my civil rights bill." Luicily Douglass made sure Sumner's legacy lived on in American history and with The Civil Rights Act of 1875. 

The bill was brought to the floor for a vote in February 1875 and was eventually passed on February 27th that same year, with a vote of thirty-eight to twenty-six. With the majority of votes in favor of the bill coming from the Republican party. Soon the bill became law on March 1, 1875 and was the first public accommodation law to ever be passed in the United States.