Just found out the origin of "grandfathered in".

The term originated in late nineteenth-century legislation and constitutional amendments passed by a number of U.S. Southern states, which created new requirements for literacy tests, payment of poll taxes, and/or residency and property restrictions to register to vote. States in some cases exempted those whose ancestors (grandfathers) had the right to vote before the American Civil War, or as of a particular date, from such requirements. The intent and effect of such rules was to prevent African-American former slaves and their descendants from voting, but without denying poor and illiterate whites the right to vote. Although these original grandfather clauses were eventually ruled unconstitutional, the terms grandfather clause and grandfather have been adapted to other uses.

What else has a problematic history you didn't realize until later?

  • sexywheat [none/use name]
    ·
    4 years ago

    Unrelated to this thread, but not only were there American First Nations slave owners, but some Canadian First Nations would actually actively slave themselves even before colonisation. The Haida Gwaii, to this day, are hated among First Nations people in British Columbia. In the 19th century, some of the FN folks actually preferred to ally with the British against the Haida because the Haidi were so ruthless.