David Strother Was the First Black Man to Realize 15th Amendment

The 15th Amendment, which protected the voting rights of African American men after the Civil War, was adopted into the U.S. Constitution in 1870.

David Strother was one of the first Black men to vote and fulfill the 15th Amendment in El Paso, Illinois. The mayor at the time took Strother to the voting booth, but an election judge tried to turn him away. The mayor presented proof the 15th Amendment had been certified and ultimately, Strother was allowed to vote.

The city of El Paso plans to build a voting rights museum in honor of Strother in the same building that his barbershop once stood.

All this and more on “Prime.”

Follow BNC on social media:

#DavidStrother #15thAmendment #CharlesBlow

[knowledgesuncere]

It’s really a lot of history for African Americans in El Paso that I never realized. Texas Western and many more. I was stationed there and didn’t know how rich our history was in that city.

[tugboat]

Is there a book on Black men voting in the United States in general. I would have thought Black people had voted in Northern states before the 15th Amendment.