III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 198 

Commemorating the 150th anniversaries of the ratification of the 13th, 14th, 

and 15th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, often 

referred to as the ‘‘Second Founding’’ of the United States. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 10, 2015 

Mr. LEAHY (for himself and Mr. LEE) submitted the following resolution; 

which was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Commemorating the 150th anniversaries of the ratification 

of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States, often referred to as the 

‘‘Second Founding’’ of the United States. 

Whereas, in 1787, delegates from the original 13 States gathered in Philadelphia to propose and ratify a new guiding 

charter, the Constitution of the United States, for the 

young republic; 

Whereas George Washington, James Madison, and the other 

delegates managed to craft the most durable form of government in world history, one that provided for its own 

revision and, therefore, allowed future generations to continue to build a ‘‘more perfect Union’’; 


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•SRES 198 ATS 

Whereas following the Civil War, President Lincoln and his 

generation did just that, ratifying a series of transformational amendments that gave the United States 

what Lincoln promised at Gettysburg, ‘‘a new birth of 

freedom’’; 

Whereas the Second Founding of the United States began in 

earnest on January 31, 1865, when Congress passed the 

13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United 

States and sent it to the States for ratification; 

Whereas the next day, President Lincoln signed the 13th 

Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, 

calling it a ‘‘King’s cure’’ for the evil of slavery; 

Whereas the people of the United States ratified the 13th 

Amendment to the Constitution of the United States on 

December 6, 1865, banning slavery and forced labor; 

Whereas the people of the United States next ratified the 

14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United 

States on July 9, 1868, enshrining a host of new constitutional guarantees; 

Whereas the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the 

United States granted United States citizenship to everyone born on the soil of, and subject to the jurisdiction of, 

the United States, protected fundamental rights like free 

speech from State abuses, ensured due process of law for 

the people of the United States, and guaranteed equality 

for all of the people of the United States; 

Whereas the people of the United States ratified the 15th 

Amendment to the Constitution of the United States on 

February 3, 1870, guaranteeing the right to vote free 

from racial discrimination; 


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•SRES 198 ATS 

Whereas the ratification of this series of amendments truly 

constituted a ‘‘Second Founding’’ for the United States; 

and 

Whereas the 150th anniversary of the Second Founding occurs over the course of the next 5 years: Now, therefore, 

be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) commemorates the 150th anniversaries of 

3 the ratification of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amend4 ments to the Constitution of the United States – the 

5 Second Founding of the United States; 

6 (2) designates the year of 2015 as the ‘‘Sesqui7 centennial of Our Nation’s Second Founding, New 

8 Birth of Freedom: Commemorating the Thirteenth, 

9 Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments’’; 

10 (3) encourages State and local governments to 

11 join in the Sesquicentennial celebration by orga12 nizing appropriate ceremonies, activities, and edu13 cational outreach; and 

14 (4) encourages the people of the United States 

15 to explore the history and significance of the Second 

16 Founding and to celebrate the continuing impor17 tance to our Constitution and to the United States 

18 of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the 

19 Constitution of the United States. 

Æ 


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