US Constitution Series, Amendment XV

Amendment XV. Rights of Citizens to Vote

SECTION. 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

SECTION. 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

There is nothing controversial about this amendment today, but it was necessary to protect the rights of former slaves and other Black citizens after the Civil War.