Georgia expelled America’s first black lawmakers in 1868 – then lost the legal battle

Georgia’s Original 33 Fight Back Against Racial Expulsion

Georgia made history in 1868 when 33 Black men won seats in the state legislature. Yet their win was short-lived.

White lawmakers soon kicked them out, claiming Black men couldn’t hold office. The expelled men fought back hard.

Henry McNeal Turner gave a fiery speech asking, “Whose legislature is this? ” Their case went to court, and they won.

By 1870, the army stepped in, booted out ex-Confederates, and put the Black lawmakers back in their rightful seats.

The story of the “Original 33” comes alive at the Georgia State Capitol, where a bronze sculpture now honors these brave pioneers.

Georgia’s First Black Lawmakers Made History During Reconstruction

In 1867-68, Georgia held a big meeting where 33 Black men joined 137 white men to write new state rules. Congress had put the South under military control after the Civil War.

Their new state constitution let Black men vote for the first time. Most Black members didn’t push to add a rule saying Blacks could hold office.

Henry McNeal Turner, a Black leader, later wished they had. This meeting set up Georgia’s first mixed-race elections since the war ended.

Black Men Win Big in Georgia’s 1868 Election

Voters picked thirty-three Black men for Georgia’s state government in July 1868. Thirty went to the House and three to the Senate, making up about one-sixth of all lawmakers.

Twenty-four worked as church ministers with strong backing from their congregations. Black women helped get voters to support these men even though they couldn’t vote themselves.

The KKK tried to scare Black voters away, but these candidates still won and became some of America’s first Black state lawmakers.

White Politicians Scheme to Remove Black Members

White Democrats hated seeing Black men in government. Though they didn’t have enough votes alone, they found white Republicans willing to help them.

Former Confederate Governor Joseph Brown claimed Black citizens could vote but not hold office under state rules. White lawmakers said Black members couldn’t serve because of their past as slaves.

The plot grew stronger after Black lawmakers voted against certain white men for U. S. Senate spots.

Georgia Kicks Out All Black Lawmakers

In September 1868, white lawmakers voted to throw all thirty-three Black members out of Georgia’s government. They didn’t hide their reasons – it happened only because these men were Black.

White politicians claimed holding office was a special right that former slaves couldn’t have, even though voters legally chose them. The kicked-out Black lawmakers didn’t give up.

They started working right away on legal challenges to fight back.

Henry Turner Stands Up With Powerful Speech

On September 3, 1868, kicked-out lawmaker Henry McNeal Turner spoke to the Georgia Legislature with words that still matter today. “Am I a man? If I am such, I claim the rights of a man,” he said. Turner refused to say sorry for being Black.

He asked, “Whose legislature is this? Is it a white man’s legislature, or is it a black man’s legislature?” His speech captured the unfairness they faced and became a rallying cry for equal rights supporters.

Deadly Violence Erupts at Camilla Protest March

Representative Philip Joiner organized a 25-mile protest walk from Albany to Camilla to fight the expulsions. On September 19, 1868, marchers headed to Camilla’s courthouse for a peaceful Republican rally.

They never got to speak. White residents, quickly made into “special officers,” shot at the marchers from stores and street corners.

At least 15 people died and 40 got hurt in what people now call the Camilla Massacre. The bloodshed showed how far whites would go to stop Black political power.

Court Rules Black Men Can Hold Office

The kicked-out lawmakers took their fight to both state and federal courts. In June 1869, Georgia’s Supreme Court ruled 2-1 in White v. Clements that Black citizens had the right to hold office.

Chief Justice Joseph Brown cast one of the deciding votes – the same man who earlier argued against Black officeholding. Republican Governor Rufus Bullock had put Brown on the court.

This legal win gave federal officials the reason they needed to step in and fix things.

General Terry Brings Back Black Lawmakers

In January 1870, General Alfred Terry took strong action to restore Republican control of Georgia’s government. People called his plan “Terry’s Purge.”

The general removed twenty-nine white Democrats who had won their seats through violence or voter intimidation. He replaced them with Republicans who came in second in the elections.

Most importantly, Terry brought back all the kicked-out Black lawmakers to their rightful seats. This move created a strong Republican majority in both houses.

Restored Lawmakers Make Big Changes

The reinstated Republican lawmakers got right to work in 1870. They quickly approved the Fifteenth Amendment, which protected voting rights for all races.

This helped Georgia become the last former Confederate state back in the Union on July 15, 1870. Black lawmakers strongly backed creating Georgia’s first public school system, which passed during this time.

The legislature also picked new U. S. senators to represent Georgia in Washington.

Democrats Took Control Through Terror and Violence

The Republican victory proved short-lived. In December 1870 elections, “Redeemer” Democrats won big majorities in both houses of the General Assembly.

They used terrorism, intimidation, and Ku Klux Klan violence to keep Black voters away from polls.

Republican Governor Rufus Bullock fled Georgia to avoid being impeached, effectively ending Reconstruction in the state. White supremacist groups targeted the Original 33 members with particular viciousness.

One-quarter of them got killed, threatened, beaten, or jailed in the years that followed.

Black Representation Disappeared for More Than Half a Century

The last African American legislator in Georgia, W. H. Rogers, resigned in 1907. Black Georgians wouldn’t have another representative in the statehouse until 1962 – a gap of 55 years.

Today, the “Expelled Because of Color” sculpture on the Georgia State Capitol grounds commemorates the Original 33 and their fight for democracy.

Their brief service established public education and helped secure constitutional amendments that later enabled civil rights progress.

In 2025, Georgia passed legislation to create memorials honoring the Original 33 in the counties they once represented.

Visiting Georgia State Capitol Building, Georgia

The Georgia State Capitol at 206 Washington Street SW in Atlanta tells the story of the Original 33, Georgia’s first Black legislators elected in 1868 who were kicked out by white lawmakers just because of their race.

You can visit the Capitol building Monday through Friday from 8 a. m. to 5 p. m. for free.

Check out the Georgia Capitol Museum on the fourth floor and take self-guided tours or book group tours of 10 or more by calling 404-463-4536.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

Read more from this brand:

• The ancient Cherokee paths that became the Trail of Tears route
• The Confederate captain who faced America’s first war crimes tribunal
• Dahlonega’s “Great Intrusion”: When gold fever trumped Cherokee rights