Civil Rights Act of 1866

Audience

The Civil Rights Act of 1866, a landmark piece of legislation in every respect, enjoyed a nationwide audience. Indeed, the conferral by statute of citizenship upon the newly freed slaves and a catalog of their  enumerated rights implied broad interest, for most Americans would be affected, directly or indirectly, by its terms. It is difficult to say which group—Blacks who stood to benefit from the act or other citizens resentful of its terms because it represented a forceful response to the Black Codes—might have been more interested, but a measure that stood civil rights on its head enjoyed numerous and very attentive audiences.

The act signaled to Black Americans that their lot in life stood a measurable chance of improvement. As a consequence, they constituted an audience of the first order. The  repudiation of the repressive Black Codes demanded attention and with it the premise of new rights, privileges, and opportunities. Supporters of the Black Codes and repression of Blacks watched the development and passage of the act with great apprehension, since their lives were changing dramatically and they were powerless to prevent the changes.

Governmental officials in the executive and judicial branches of the federal government, as well as those in state government, were attentive students of the measure as well. The president was given specific enforcement authority. Federal judges, too, were armed with expanded jurisdiction and power to hear cases involving failure of officials to adhere to the terms of the act. State actors were highly attentive, since they were suddenly burdened with the obligation of  implementing the newly established rights assigned to Blacks, a  compelling change for many officials.