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Dred Scott v Sandford
Dred Scott was a slave in Missouri that resided in Illinois for 10 years. When he returned to Missouri he filed a suit claiming that because he had resided in a free territory he was now a free man. The court ruled that he could not be an American citizen and therefore had no standing to sue in federal court. Taney further ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional under the 5th amendment because slaves were property and you could not deprive a slave owner of his property. -
13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment forever abolished slavery as an institution in all of the United States and territories. As well as abolishing slavery, the amendment outlawed the practice of involuntary servitude, which occurs when a person is coerced to work to pay off their debts. But it says that forced labor can be used as a punishment for a crime. -
14th Amendement
The 14th Amendment grants citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States, including former slaves. It also granted all citizens equal protection under the law, due process, and the requirements of the states. The 14th Amendment also reapportioned African Americans to count as a whole number of persons in each state. it also prohibited former civil-military officeholders who supported the Confederacy from holding any state or federal office. -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment granted African American men the right to vote by declaring that the "right of citizens of the United State to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." Although it had its limitations, the 15th Amendment was an important step in the struggle for voting rights for African Americans and it laid the groundwork for future civil rights activism. -
Poll Taxes
Beginning in the 1890s, poll taxes were used as a legal way to keep African Americans from voting in southern states. Eligible voters were required to pay their poll tax before they could cast a ballot. A "grandfather clause" excused some poor whites from payment if they had an ancestor who voted before the Civil War, but there were no exemptions for African Americans. -
Plessy v Ferguson
Louisiana enacted the Separate Car Act which required separate railway cars for blacks and whites. Homer Plessy was 7/8 white and agreed to participate in a test to challenge the Act by sitting in a whites-only car, to which he refused and was arrested. The court held that the state law was constitutional and upheld state-imposed segregation. Claimed that separate treatment did not imply the inferiority of African Americans. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment guaranteed the right to vote for all American citizens, regardless of sex. Women across the nation would have an equal voice in the laws and politics that would govern them. Voting ensures women's reproductive and economic progress. This amendment helps millions of women to move closer to equality in all aspects of life. Having worked collectively to win the right to vote more women were empowered to pursue a broad range of political interests as voters. -
White Primaries
White primaries were one of the many means used to discourage African Americans from voting. They permitted political parties in the democratic south to exclude African Americans from primary elections, thus depriving them of a voice in the real contests, The Supreme Court declared white primaries unconstitutional in 1944. -
Brown v Board of Education
African American students had been denied admittance to certain public schools based on laws allowing public education to be segregated by race. Separate but equal educational facilities for racial minorities in inherently unequal, violating the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Supreme Court held that "separate but equal" facilities are inherently unequal and violate the protections of the Equal Protection Clause. -
24th Amendment
The 24th amendment outlawed the poll tax as a voting requirement in federal elections. The poll taxes had prevented many African Americans from having any sort of political power. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It hastened the end of legal Jim Crow. It secured African Americans equal access to restaurants, transportation, and other public facilities. It enabled blacks, women, and other minorities to break down barriers in the workplace. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action is the requirement, imposed by law or administrative regulation, that an organization take positive steps to increase the number or proportion of women, African Americans, or other minorities. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed the discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War, including literacy tests as a prerequisite to voting. This "act to enforce the fifteenth amendment to the Constitution" was signed into law 95 years after the amendment was ratified. -
Reed v Reed
The Idaho Probate Code specified that "males must be preferred to females" in appointing administrators of estates. When Sally and Cecil Reed's son died, they each sought to be named the administrator of their son's estate. According to the Probate Code, Cecil was appointed administrator. The court held that the law's dissimilar treatment of men and women was unconstitutional. This marked the first time that the Equal Protection Clause was used to strike down a law discriminating against women. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment is a constitutional amendment that would prohibit denying or abridging equal rights under the law by the United States or any state on account of sex. This critical amendment would guarantee the equal rights of men and women by ensuring that government programs and federal resources benefit men and women equally. -
Regents of the United States of California v Bakke
Allan Bakke, a 35-year-old white man, applied twice to the University of California. He was rejected both times. The school reserved 16 spots for minorities. Bakke argued that he was excluded solely on the basis of race. The court argued yes and no. Most voted in favor of Bakke and ordered the medical school to admit him. The court managed to minimize white oppression to the goal of equality while extending gains for racial minorities through affirmative action. -
Bowers v Hardwick
Hardwick was observed by police while engaging in homosexual relations in his home. He was charged with violating a Georgia statute. The court found that there was no constitutional protection or acts of sodomy and that states could outlaw those practices. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination that guarantees that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in the mainstream of American life, to enjoy employment opportunities, purchase goods and services, public accommodations, transportation, and commercial facilities. -
Lawrence v Texas
Responding to a reported weapons disturbance in a private residence, Houston police entered John Lawrence's apartment and saw him and another man engaging in a private consensual sexual act. They were both arrested and convicted of deviate sexual intercourse. The court held that the Texas statute making it a crime for two people of the same sex to engage in intimate activities violates the Due Process Clause. The court reasoned that the men were free adults and could engage in private conduct. -
Obergefell v Hodges
Groups of same-sex couples sued their state agencies to challenge the constitutionality of those states' bans on same-sex marriage or refusal to recognize legal same-sex marriages. Court held that the Due Process Clause of the 14th amendment guarantees the right to marry as one of the fundamental liberties it protects.
