Upon the conclusion of the War Between the States, the 13th-15th Amendments were ratified; of which the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, the 14th Amendment defined citizenship, therefore permitting those that were previously enslaved to become citizens, and the 15th Amendment codified the enfranchisement of blacks, previously denied the power and privilege of voting. This subsequent change was profound, for those blacks so living in the Southern States, were many in numbers, and those franchised numbers meant for the first time that blacks actually got local, county, State, and Federal representation, and of which the first black so elected to the House of Representatives was Hiram Rhodes Revels in 1870; yet, only 32 years later, George H. White became the last black congressman in that body; until Oscar DePriest in 1928, was elected, but not to a Southern congressional district, but instead to a district, dominated by blacks in Chicago.
So, in effect, though the Civil War ostensibly freed blacks, and gave blacks both citizenship as well as voting rights; the Southern white infrastructure, though defeated, ultimately were able to snatch back everything that they had lost in the Civil War and basically returned the black man to a condition of abject peonage, in those re-constituted Southern States, and it was not until 1971, when the District of Columbia was allowed Congressional representation, that any black man from the South was part, once again, of the House of Representatives, through the special election of Walter Fauntroy, of which Representative Fauntroy was a non-voting delegate to that body.
This thus signifies that the blood, sweat, and tears so devoted in good measure so as to defeat those that seceded from this Union of States, with these rebels also drawing first blood in that Civil War, that cost the lives of so many, were, in essence, never put out of business, but only temporarily did they have to cede some of their power, which they ultimately claimed with a vengeance, right back. So what of those of color, that were clearly not represented in this national government, as well as local, State, and county governments for decades upon decades, and of which, the racial gerrymandering within States, as now in effect in the present day, still diminishes their fair representation?
This country is supposed to be a country of meritocracy, justice, fairness, and opportunity, yet it has historically closed the door upon all those that do not match the color of those that are the power brokers of it, and even when those of color are able to get some sort of representation, it appears that that representation is always to be a subset of their actual franchised or should-be franchised numbers. This is indicative of a systemic problem which has not been robustly resolved through Constitutional Amendments or even through strong Civil Rights laws, but remains until this day, an ever-present thorn in the side of those that are still on the receiving end of suffering through this perpetual raw deal.
All that said, at least American governance deserves some credit for attempting to be a "melting pot" of different creeds, nationalities and opinions; but alas attempting is not the same thing as accomplishing, and any governance that fails to live by the spirit of the law, is that governance which has betrayed its liberty and justice for all.