3 Ridiculous Things That Used To Be Illegal For Black Folks
Black History Year
PushBlack
4.6 • 2.2K Ratings
🗓️ 11 September 2025
⏱️ 3 minutes
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Summary
Today’s tough-on-crime laws couldn’t hold a candle back in the day. As soon as enslavement ended, the foolishness started. Black people – even those who were already free – could be jailed for anything, and these reasons are three of the most ridiculous.
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Transcript
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| 0:32.8 | Today's tough on crime laws couldn't hold a candle to backing the day. |
| 0:38.3 | As soon as enslavement ended, the foolishness started. |
| 0:42.4 | Black people, even those who were already free, could be jailed for anything. |
| 0:47.9 | And these reasons are three of the most ridiculous. |
| 0:51.4 | I'm Len with Push Black, and this is two-minute black history. What You Didn't |
| 0:56.0 | Learn in school. |
| 1:09.3 | We all know about driving while black and other laws, but during reconstruction, the laws were used to stifle us. |
| 1:18.1 | Here are three of the most ridiculous laws from back then. |
| 1:21.5 | In Mississippi, all black people had to have a job or conduct business. Those who didn't were jailed for 10 days or fined $150, which is about $3,000 today. |
| 1:37.3 | Black people in Louisiana were barred from owning or renting houses in certain communities, and anyone who sold or rented a house to a black person was fined $5 or about $100 today. |
| 1:51.0 | Black people living in the houses were evicted, driven from the area, or forced into employment in the area. |
| 1:59.0 | In Virginia, free black people. Free black people could not own |
| 2:05.3 | dogs for any reason. White plantation owners were even fined for allowing black people to own |
| 2:12.6 | dogs on their property. Dogs were used to oppress and harm black people, and after enslavement, a black |
| 2:18.6 | person who owned a dog was seen as a troublemaker. Laws that seem silly on the outside were implemented to control our location, our access to jobs, and our ability to defend ourselves. |
| 2:49.2 | Remember that society stops at nothing to change the game on us when it comes to our liberation, |
| 2:54.7 | so we can't stop our fight either. |
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