Historian Badge- Voting Restrictions

Literacy tests were a barrier to voting in Southern states, as well as other parts of the country, from the post-Reconstruction (late 1870s) period until they were banned by the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Literacy tests required proof that voters could read before they were able to vote. In actuality they included unanswerable questions like "Draw a line around the number or letter of this sentence" so that African-American voters would fail the test and be excluded from voting. Literacy tests were part of a set of obstacles commonly referred to as "Jim Crow laws." These laws established segregation (separation of races) and blocked voting rights in the American South.

• Ok, I read this!

• I didn't read this

  (this is the wrong answer)

What were two methods of voting restrictions that April Baldwin mentioned as a way to prevent African Americans from voting?

• Literacy tests and poll taxes
• Civic education programs and community service

• Same-day registration and absentee ballots
• Voter ID laws and residency requirements

Why was paying about $1.00 for a poll tax hard for African Americans

• They didn't have that much money to spare because they didn't make a lot of money and had other expenses to worry about

• The poll tax was a voluntary fee for voting.
• African Americans were not allowed to pay the dollar at the government center.

• Poll taxes were only a minor inconvenience for all citizens.

Why was it difficult to pass a literacy test?

• Literacy tests were only given to those who requested them.
• White officials at the voting booths would ask ridiculous questions that were nearly impossible to answer.

• Questions were made up of multiple choice and essays.

• The registration office refused to give the tests to African Americans or would not process them if they did happen to take the tests.

Were the literacy tests that were given to white people the same as the literacy tests given to black people?

• Both groups had no tests at all.
• The tests were easier for black people.
• Yes, they were identical.
• No, the literacy tests were not the same.