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Defining a New California: The Constitution of 1849 
"It is with pride I say it, we are showing to our white fellow-citizens that we have some natural abilities; we are resolved to let them see that all we want is an equal chance, an open field, and a fair fight…." E. A. Booth of Nevada County at the 2nd Colored Citizen’s Convention, December 1856. Californians quickly began to develop laws and institutions as the U.S. Congress debated whether California should be admitted to the union as a slave or free state. Many gold seekers had little interest in the way the state was governed, but Americans and Californios convened a constitutional convention in September 1849 to draw up a proper government. The new constitution institutionalized the discrimination that consumed the rest of the country. Only white males over 21 who held U.S. citizenship could vote, excluding women, African Americans, Chinese, Indians, and Californios of mixed racial heritage. As California moved into its first years as a state, debates continued:
The enmity felt by so many Americans to people of color disappointed those Californians who felt that the Golden State had fallen short of its potential to create a free and equal society. |
 California 150
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