The 14th amendment was passed by congress on June 13, 1866 and ratified (approved) July 9, 1868. It was passed giving previous slaves- (slavery was abolished in the 13th amendment except as punishment.) the rights that all United States citizens should have. It stated in section one: All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make of enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person within it's jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. Not only did this refer to African Americans and white people but to every United States citizen no mater of race, color, or previous condition of servitude involuntary or not.…
