Votes and Voices at Oak Street Library
At Oak Street Public Library, Ms. Chen's fifth-grade team is planning an exhibit called Votes and Voices. The exhibit will explain how voting rights expanded in the United States. The students have two possible plans. Choice A is a timeline of amendments. Choice B is a set of short cards about people and groups who worked for change.
The timeline begins with the 15th Amendment, ratified in 1870. It said that the right to vote could not be denied by the United States or a state because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. The 19th Amendment, ratified in 1920, said voting could not be denied because of sex. The 24th Amendment, ratified in 1964, prohibited poll taxes in federal elections. The 26th Amendment, ratified in 1971, lowered the voting age to 18.
The timeline does not tell the whole story. After the 15th Amendment, some officials and groups used poll taxes, literacy tests, and intimidation to block Black voters. Black voters and their allies challenged these barriers in court, registered voters, marched, wrote, and testified. The Voting Rights Act of 1965, a law passed by Congress, also helped enforce the 15th Amendment and blocked certain discriminatory voting practices.
Choice B includes people such as Susan B. Anthony, who organized meetings, wrote, and petitioned for women's suffrage. Ida B. Wells, a Black journalist and organizer, fought racial injustice and worked for women's suffrage. Fannie Lou Hamer registered voters and testified about unfair treatment. Native American citizens and advocates also worked for fair access to voting. Young Americans organized and argued for a voting age of 18. These efforts took place over many years, and no single person won voting rights alone.
Ms. Chen asks the team to compare the choices carefully. A timeline can make the dates and constitutional changes easy to follow. People cards can show that an amendment or law did not automatically remove every barrier. Together, the two choices can show both changes in government rules and the work of Americans who pressed those rules to be honored.