Grandfather clause

A grandfather clause is an exception, originating from the United States, that allows a pre-existing rule to remain as it is despite a change in the rules applied to newer situations. It is often used as the verb "to grandfather in".

Origin

The source of the term grandfather clause was the Jim Crow laws used from 1895 to 1910 in seven of the Southern United States to prevent blacks, Native Americans and whites of non-British descent from voting.

Related Topics:
Jim Crow law - 1895 - 1910 - Southern United States - Blacks - Native Americans - Whites

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In 1870, the Fifteenth Amendment, granting former slaves the right to vote, was ratified. In response, these states passed laws providing that all persons allowed to vote before the American Civil War, and any of their descendants, were exempt from poll taxes levied and/or supposed "literacy" tests required at the time.

Related Topics:
1870 - Fifteenth Amendment - Slave - Ratified - Vote - American Civil War - Descendant - Poll tax - Literacy

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These laws had the effect of disenfranchising blacks, but not whites, until the ratification of the Twenty-fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and a 1966 Supreme Court ruling eliminated most legal barriers to black voting.

Related Topics:
Disenfranchising - Twenty-fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution - 1965 Voting Rights Act - 1966 - Supreme Court

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