What is Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution?
{{US Constitution article series}} [[File:JABingham.jpg|thumb|right|200px|{{Center|Representative John A. Bingham of Ohio, the main [[author]] (framer) of the Fourteenth Amendment}}]] The '''Fourteenth Amendment''' ('''Amendment XIV''') to the [[United States Constitution]] was adopted on July 9, 1868. It was one of the [[Reconstruction Amendments]]. The [[amendment]] discusses [[citizenship]] rights and [[Equal Protection Clause|equal protection]] of the [[law]]s. It was proposed in response to issues related to former [[Slavery|slaves]] following the [[American Civil War]]. This amendment was bitterly contested. [[Southern United States|Southern states]] were forced to ratify it in order to regain representation in Congress. The Fourteenth Amendment is one of the most [[Lawsuit|litigated]] parts of the Constitution. It forms the basis for [[landmark decision]]s such as ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' (1973), and ''[[Bush v. Gore]]'' (2000). It remains the most important Constitutional amendment since the [[Bill of Rights]] was passed in 1791. == Summary == At the end of the Civil War, [[Abraham Lincoln]] freed the slaves. The problem was, he did not ask [[United States Congress|Congress]].<ref name=NM>{{cite web |url=http://www1.nickmalik.com/explaining-the-14th-amendment-in-non-technical-english/ |title=Explaining the 14th Amendment in Non-Technical English |author=Nick Malik |date=7 February 2014 |website= |publisher=Nick Malik |accessdate=11 April 2015 |archive-date=25 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150425031757/http://www1.nickmalik.com/explaining-the-14th-amendment-in-non-technical-english/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Congress had not passed a law to free slaves. Meanwhile, some states still had slavery.<ref name=NM/> The [[Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Thirteenth Amendment]] freed the slaves. It became law in late 1865. Three years later the Fourteenth Amendment provided [[civil rights]]. [[Radical Republicans|Republican]]s controlled Congress during this period.<ref nam