The 14th Amendment was necessary to make clear that Black people, as well as anyone born in the country or naturalized, were American citizens. The 13th Amendment formally abolished slavery.The 14th Amendment established African Americans as equal citizens of the United States. Ferguson (18 May 1896) The Louisiana legislature had passed a law requiring black and white residents to ride separate, but equal, train cars. The 14th Amendment redefined American citizenship and fundamentally altered the relationship between the states and the Federal government. In many states freedmen. (or women) could not be out after dark, carry a knife or gun, or associate with one another. The Citizenship Clause broadly defines citizenship, superseding the Supreme Court's decision in Dred Scott v. It did not abolish existing state governments in the South and made no mention of the right to vote for blacks.