Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits former government officials from holding public office again if they have engaged in insurrection or rebellion. In 1957, the Georgia General Assembly passed a resolution asking the United States to declare the 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution null and void.Citizens, protection of. In the summer of 1868, Georgia's General Assembly finally ratified the Fourteenth Amendment. Nine days after that action, federal troops were withdrawn. One of the purposes of the Fourteenth Amendment was to provide federal protection of individual rights against the states. Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. Amendment IX (1791). Just over 155 years ago, on July 9, 1868, the second of the three Reconstruction Amendments was adopted. The Equal Protection Clause requires each state to provide equal protection under the law to all people, including non-citizens, within its jurisdiction.