Congress overrides Johnson veto to enact first federal civil rights law

Congress enacts the Civil Rights Act of 1866 on April 9, 1866, overriding President Andrew Johnson's veto. The law declares that all people born in the United States, except people subject to foreign powers and most Native people at the time, are citizens and have the same basic civil rights regardless of race. The statute responds to Black Codes passed by former Confederate states after the Civil War. It protects rights to make contracts, sue, give evidence, and own property. Congress uses federal power to define national citizenship and challenge state systems designed to keep formerly enslaved people subordinate.