Question

What was the result of removing poll taxes and literacy test?

Answer 1

Removing poll taxes and literacy tests helped to eliminate voting barriers for African-Americans. These were initially put in place after the passing of the Reconstruction amendments (13th, 14th, and 15th amendments). This was supposed to significantly reduce the amount of African-Americans who were eligible to vote.

This is due to the fact that many African-Americans after the Civil War era did not have the ability to read or write, as they were forced to work on plantations in the South. Along with this, poll taxes were also extremely limiting, as African-Americans were not able to earn wages as slaves.

Ultimately, the removing of these barriers leads to increased voter turnout for African-Americans.