The Second Founding: How the Civil War and Reconstruction Remade the Constitution

The 1870s saw a retreat from Reconstruction efforts after the election of 1867. Black rights began to erode in the 1880s, but Black people continued to fight for their rights. After the amendments were passed, the Supreme Court’s decisions led to a gradual withdrawal from the initial ideals of Reconstruction. This was due not only to racial biases but also to a concern for maintaining federalism. The Supreme Court’s decisions reflected the weakening national support for Reconstruction during the 1870s and 1880s.

In the early 1870s, the Supreme Court began handling cases related to the new legislation. A landmark ruling was in the Slaughterhouse Cases, which stemmed from Louisiana’s law centralizing meat processing to improve sanitation. White butchers sued, claiming the law violated their right to free labor as protected under the Privileges or Immunities Clause and alleged legislative corruption. The court upheld the law based on a state’s existing authority to regulate businesses for public health reasons. Justice Samuel J. Miller used the case to address the 13th and 14th Amendments, affirming that their purpose was to secure the freedoms of formerly enslaved people and protect their rights. However, Miller significantly limited the scope of the 14th Amendment’s Privileges or Immunities Clause, arguing it did not change the federal balance significantly.