And in those several capacities, its a pleasure for me to welcome all of you attending this symposium in person. As well as our audience on cspan to this Second Annual symposium on constitutional issues. This year, we examine the 15th amendment and invite a conversation as our Program States on suffrage in light of the hopes and realities of american identity and governance. In many ways this university is the ideal venue for such a conversation. Envisioned as a Great National episcopal institution by a group of founding bishops in the 1850s, the university of the south by 1860 possessed more than 6,000 acres of land on the Cumberland Plateau in tennessee. It had an endowment half the size of harvards. I often think with my regents about what that would mean for us today. We wouldnt be lamenting an 8 return. And saw itself, in that vision, with colleges of different sizes, schools of law and medicine and business and theology. Saw itself indeed as americas first truly comprehensive private university a half generation ahead of Johns Hopkins and chicago and large crowd gathered for the dedication of the University Cornerstone in october of 1860. What the founders possessed in vision, they utterly lacked in timing. Within a month, Abraham Lincoln was elected president. Secession and 4 years of war followed. Every penny was lost and every building destroyed. The words of the familiar hymn describe the reality at wars end. Not a stone was left on stone. All the nations pride or throne went down to dust. But a new generation of founders chastened by war, cleansed from the state of pride, knowing firsthand how original sin can cause a world to fall, returned to the mountain and went to work so that the university could finally open its doors to eight students in september of 1868. Now a college of 1700 undergraduates and a college of theology of 80 resident students. Sewanee, over 150 years, the university of many different souths is now shaped by, learning from but neither denying nor attempting to retreat into its past is now the , university of the 21st century south. That means many things. But it means especially a willingness to confront the toughest questions about ourselves and the region whose name we bear. Inspired by the words of the poet William Butler yeats, out of the quarrel with others we make rhetoric. Out of the quarrel with ourselves poetry. , alan tate, onetime editor of the sewanee review, observed that by the early 20th century , southerners, in his words looked around and saw for the time, since at least 1830, that the yankees were not to blame for everything. The work of tate and a whole generation of writers, many with deep sewanee connections, the souths quarrel with itself imparted a profound and complex meaning to the experience of civil war. Sin and love and fear, wrote william faulkner, are just sounds that people who have never sinned nor loved nor feared have for what they never had and cannot have until they forget the words. That quarrel and not just with that will, out of time may come let praise or condemnation. Poetry. Maybe not or perhaps, most important, understanding. That is the purpose of this university every day and especially, today. We will be hearing from panels of distinguished scholars, jurists, and general list there will be plenty of time for engagement and discussion and we invite your active participation in that part of the day. I think our participants in accepting our invitation and i think my colleagues, many of whom we will be hearing from later today as panel chairs. I want to call out one person in particular who is, perhaps appropriately, off doing important work behind the scenes of this conference. I want to recognize by name, a graduate of this university, a history major who has seamless and effortlessly made this all work. Nearby . Ots, are you if not, we applaud you. [applause] to why all of you for joining us. We look forward to an exciting and perhaps a provocative day. It is my pleasure to introduce my colleague from the department of politics who will chair our first panel. Good morning. I am associate professor in the end chair of the department of politics and director of the Prelaw Program here. I thank you you for joining us here. It features gloria brownemarshall and Michael Carmen. Gloria brownemarshall is an associate professor of constitutional law at John Jay College of criminal justice at new york. Niversity of she teaches classes in race, law, evidence, gender, and justice. Ofraduate of the University Missouri at columbia, she received a law degree and masters degree in government. She is a former civil rights attorney who has litigated cases for the Southern Poverty Law Center as well as the and aa cp. Naacp. Member of the Supreme Court of the United States and a fellow American Bar Association and has broken on race and constitution to both national and international audiences. She is the article of many articles on several books 16thding race, law, and Century America to the present. Her forthcoming book is entitled salem witch trials and the law. Gloria brownemarshall has been the recipient of several awards including an award for her work with civil rights in womens issues and the Wiley College of women in excellence award. An awardwinning playwright of seven plays, her most recent play examines marriage choices. She is a member of the dramatists guild, mystery writers of america, National Association of black journalists, 10 American Center press club. Nal i ask you to please welcome our guests. [applause] professor brownemarshall thank you professor mcardle for that introduction. Thinking about the topic of the 15th amendment and because of by work, not just on my book the Voting Rights were , but because my research on black women and log, i was thinking of the suffragette and suffragettes lack confronting opposition on all sides, first i would like you to take a little time to have a threeminute journey through history and this is a small film i created just to give you an idea of the Journey Black women have taken when it comes to their almost400 year history in the United States. Video] the journey of the africanamerican woman has fulfilled great promise and tragedy. Accomplishments and betrayal. However, she has been able to ascend to the highest level of American Life despite opposition based on both her race and her gender. How has she been able to become. Or not, executive, educator in medicine and the military, the cup on the street as well as the congressperson. She has been able to follow this courageous path because years ago, centuries ago, she discovered that the weapon being able to enslave ferc could also be the total she used for her freedom. The law. Virginia, founded in 1607, group of 20 africans and of unknown, women from the angola region of africa and it was from those women that our story begins. Women who had as part of their and e queen, warrior, prevented slavery. She was defeated. However, the courage of her spirit, the fight for humanity, the need for personhood could be evidence despite all those who would not believe it. Stayed within the african women. It is through that dna that the africanamerican women was able to fight for freedom in the 1600s and follow through with civil rights cases. Decided in the highest court of our land. Civil rights cases decided in fall the dishes of civil liberty, Voting Rights, housing, political participation. Those fights for freedom in the courts. Each and every one of them had at its core the africanamerican women fighting against great odds. People in the law and society were against her. She stood up for herself. Supported by people in her community, she had in her heart the need for her existence come the need to fight for her family, her community. The story of the africanamerican womans ascent to power is a centurieslong struggle filled with obstacles 16191969, we will show you the cases and fault a neat africanamerican womans fight for power through the courts. [end video] professor brownemarshall i want you to understand that despite all of that and the fact that black women vote at the greatest rate in this country, they vote in percentage is higher than white women, white men, any other group. Yet, on may 20 9, 2017, as i was hadhing on julie reid, she on her show someone who had to tom perez,er Democratic NationalCommittee Chair titled theres too much at stake to ignore black women. How is it in 2017 with this kind of voter participation, how is it that black women were still being ignored into their political power marginalized . Welcome to the Program Ended with a clearly frustrated ms. Williams and the person who was on the show to refute her claims arguing on behalf of the Democratic Party was a black male. So, when we look at this i want you to consider this dynamic and understand it is over 150 years old. Confrontingmy talk segregation and sexism on all sides means that too often black are without the allies they deserve, there political power marginalized. Yet, they have been able to do so much with so little. With take a step back. 1619. As was noted in film, and 1607 the Jamestown Colony was founded. The first eminent english settlement. It was dying. In case you do not know, jamestown was a swamp land then. They had gotten to the point of cannibalism. It was horrible. In 1619, 20 africans arrived. Women and men. This was a year before the mayflower landed. The mayflower landed in 1620. We are here before the mayflower. Within this group, we had rice up an african couple. Marion into the johnson. Marion Antony Johnson actually gained their freedom. Perches land, and had white and black servants mary and anthony johnson. They purchased land. They had white and black servants. There is no problem with you taking notes. Law is evidencebased and you should be able to find the evidence of what i say. During this time, we also had people who owned property. They wanted to, of course, extend their profit margin. How did they do this . By limiting the rights of the colony. In the as time went on, although Property Ownership was one of the major reasons why a person can vote, it was a requirement and the johnsons owned property. How would the world be different if things had just regressed from there . Lets go forward. We have black women participating is best they can. Certain rights were given to certain blacks but it was more of privileges. The first known black politician , who was elected constable of the New Hampshire town of newmarket in 1768. 1768. When the constitution was ratified in 1787, states were given the power to determine their qualification for voting. That is under article one, section two. To this day, it states for the most part determined qualifications for voting. Also under article one of the constitution, africans and 3 5 ofn were considered a person when it counted the number of representatives from each state but certain states to allow people to vote who were not in that Traditional Group of white males only who owned property. New jersey was one such state. At one time, new jersey allowed women and blacks to vote. It was taken away in 1807. This was because there was an influx of immigrants into the idea, even during that time, was to increase the political power of White Americans in one way they could do that was by taking away the property provision and putting more requirements on people of african descent. By taking away the property provision that no longer requiring Property Ownership for voting, it allowed those poor people coming from western europe to be able to be counted voten those who could within the states. In new york, the debate for black men continued well after slavery ended in 1820 seven. Prior to this, Property Ownership value that 250 was required by black men but not by way men. You see these types of discrepancy from state to state. Were not always discrepancies based on race, for example there were discrepancies based on religion. Certain jewish constituents and states could not vote or irish catholics. As a matter fact, the initial literacy test for irish had a test ofy course on the interpretation of the bible. The catholic version of the bible, you know they were not allowed to register to vote. As we go forward, we have women who are struggling for the right 1928, 1848,n july the first womens right convention was held in seneca falls, new york. Organized by two abolitionists. So you had to white women who are abolitionists and you also at black female abolitionists, blackmail evolutionist. Lucretia mott and Elizabeth Stanton these i did had had enough. They wanted their right to vote. They organized this seneca falls convention. Theres no record of any black women now attending this convention or even being invited to this convention. But a black male was present. Frederick douglass. Frederick douglass was a longtime advocate of womens right to vote and not only had he advertised the upcoming convention, but he spoke at the convention. However, this is very interesting, we have to wonder where was Frederick Douglass is did she not accompany him to this convention . We have from this convention 300 women meeting in seneca falls and they produce a declaration many ways it is similar to the declaration of independence but it is their declaration of sentiment and among those sentiments is demand for equality under law. Black women sought inclusion in this new suffrage movement, believing there was a common cause to be found among them all. However, their reception range from toleration to some who actually rejected the presence of black women because although white women claimed there should be equality for all, as we know, the saying goes, some are more equal than others. At this point, they thought there was a hierarchy of equality and in this hierarchy of equality, black women should not be at the same level of white women in the suffrage movement. Not all women felt this way but certainly some did. So this leads to Sojourner Truth. What i like to say about Sojourner Truth is that this amazing women who was born in 17 91 and slavery was an abolitionist, preacher. She brought three different lawsuits and she was just an amazing person. Traveled across the country. Preaching what she thought was the truth. She changed her name to Sojourner Truth to mark her journey and the fact that she was there to tell truth to power. That it is that this Womens Convention in 1851 that she speech. Her why . The convention is racially segregated. She now speaks up to say to the weight women in the audience, that man let that man over there says women need to be held into carriages lifted over ditches and nobody ever helps me into carriages, over mud puddles, or place. E any other best and i am woman . Look at me. Look at my arms. I have plowed, planted, brought into barns. Woman . Aint i a i can bear heat. Woman . A borne five children and given them over to slavery. And when i cried out, nobody but jesus heard me. Woman . A parity, too. About those people arrived on the same boe, worked the same hours, same lash. The parity continues. The conflicts continued. In the dred scott case, we know in 1857 the u. S. Supreme court ruled against dred scott in which he sued for his freedom. But it was not just the dred scott case, it was the dred and case. T scott both were litigants in this action, yet only he has recognize. It is recognized. We find this happens time and again, women are overshadowed by their men and for the most part, sit back and allow the men to take the limelight but lets make sure we set the record straight. The Supreme Court ruled against dred scott after he end. Scott won their initial suit at the trial court level, the Supreme Court said that a black right. No a white man is bound to respect has no right a white man is bound to respect. There is only political privileges that can be taken away at any time. When the Supreme Court made this decision that read and Harriet Scott were not citizens and therefore could not bring an action in court, he then gave this cause of action not just local cause of action for st. Louis, missouri, and for that family, but this became the law of the land for black men and women. Aspite being here as early 1619 and others have said, even earlier north america, they were not considered citizens. The civil war followed. There is much more i could go over but we must understand that black women have been fighting for their rights in something called slave courts. Like Margaret Garner who escaped, made her way on most across the ohio river but was captured and brought back but when she was captured she actually murdered her baby daughter. Beloved. Basis for you have read that novel. She murdered her daughter rather than have another black woman raised in slavery. The issues of black women slavery, the type of ongoing rapes and the work they did in the field, as pointed out by Sojourner Truth, gives you an although black men in women were bearing the lash, there were also very special things happening with bla