Section 1.
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 or enforce any
law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor
shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of
law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Section 2.
Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective
numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed.
But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and
Vice-President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and
Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to
any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens
of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion,
or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion
which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.
Section 3.
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President
and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States,
or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress,
or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature,
or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution
of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Section 4.
The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including
debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing
insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States
nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of
insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or
emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held
illegal and void.
Section 5.
The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions
this article.
Analysis & Application
Section 1: Anyone born in the United States is a citizen. The states cannot deprive a person
of life, liberty or pursuit of property without due process.
Section 2: Representatives in states are going to be appointed based off of how many people
there are. If a state refuses a male over 21 the right to vote, the population count in the
state lowers.
Section 3: People who swore an oath to protect the consitution but broke it by being in a rebellion
or helping an enemy lose the ability to serve in the government. However, votes them back in with
2/3 majority.
Section 4: The United States will honor public debts but won't pay for ones that supported
rebellions or ones by slave owners who want to be paid for their slaves being released.
This amendment has a lot of content, however I think the part where everyone born in the U.S.
is automatically a citizen is really important. This amendment also kind of brings in the electoral college,
with it mentioning that number of representatives is based off of how many people are in a
given population.