Which amendment granted citizenship and equal protection under the law?

• A. The 14th Amendment guaranteed citizenship and equal protection under the law.
• B. The 15th Amendment guaranteed citizenship and equal protection under the law.
• C. The 13th Amendment guaranteed citizenship and equal protection under the law.
• D. The 19th Amendment guaranteed citizenship and equal protection under the law.

Answer: (A)

The Fourteenth Amendment is the one that guarantees citizenship and equal protection under the law. Ratified in 1868, it declares that anyone born or naturalized in the United States is a citizen, which establishes birthright citizenship. It also contains the Equal Protection Clause, requiring states to treat people equally under the law and not deny them the same protections. This combination—defining who is a citizen and ensuring equal legal protection—was central to protecting the rights of formerly enslaved people and extending constitutional rights beyond the federal level to the states. The other amendments address related rights (abolishing slavery, protecting voting rights, extending suffrage to women) but do not simultaneously establish citizenship status and the principle of equal protection in one provision.