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13th Amendment
This amendment abolished slavery. Although this amendment did not rid of slavery, it did not grant them rights. -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment grants citizenship to "all persons born or naturalized in the United States." This grants rights and citizenship especially to slaves. -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment granted African American men the right to vote. This amendment is important because it gave African American men the right to have a say in the government. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson Case was brought about when Plessy, a black man, sat in a "white car." He was charged for this, and his case went all the way to the Supreme Court, where his lawyer argued that the 'Seperate Car Act' violated the 13th and 14th amendment. This case established that it was ok for services to be seperate, as long as they were "equal".This remained until 1954, when the Brown v. Board of Education ruled the "seperate but equal" illegal. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote. This amendment is important becuase it allowed women to voice their opinions in the government. This started an evolution amoung women in the 1920's where women began to have more freedoms and change the way that they thought. -
Jim Crow
The Jim Crow Era was a time period in which African Americans and other races were seen as inferior to whites. Some aspects of the Jim Crow Era were segregating whites and blacks in public places such as restaurants and buses.This time period began around 1877 and lasted through the late 1960's. -
Korematsu v United States
This case is significant because it challenges an Executive Order that required all Japenense peoples, citizens of U.S. or not, to live in camps during the war. This is significant because although it forced people out of there homes, and was in fact unconstitutional, the court sided with the government stating that these actions were ok in times of, "emergency and peril". -
Sweatt v. Painter
Student Herman Sweatt applied to The University of Texas Law School, but his application was turned down due to the fact that he was black. He appealed to the state, asking that they force that the school admit him. However, the state informed Sweatt of the newly opened "all negroe" law school. The schools seperated by race were still allowed at this time because of the "seperate but equal" doctrine. However, the all black school was not an equal institution, and Sweatt was granted admission. -
Brown v Board of Education
Quite possibly the greatest decision in court ever made was in the Brown v Board of Ed. when the supreme court decided that segregation was a violation of the 14th amendment. Though it did not integrate public schools all the way, it did make racial equality constitutional. This case reversed the decisions made at Plessy v. Ferguson. -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a thirteen month mass protest in which African Americans sustained in riding public buses because they were segregated. The significance of this event is that it showed how powerful non-violent protesting is. Once the protest ended, the Supreme Court ruled that the segregation of local buses is unconsititutional. -
Literacy Tests
Literacy tests were given to all voters, but they were specifically in place so that African Americans could not vote. This was yet another way to prevent African Americans from having a voice in government. -
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Bridges was the first African American woman to attend an all white school in the south.Bridges led the way for many African American students by showing them that their education was important and that they should be allowed to learn in segregated schools. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action was created from an executive order, and was signed by JFK in 1961. This required that employers or school administrators (etc) are not allowed to discriminate based on race or gender. This was a major milestone for minorities and women. Some do not support this executive order, because they believe that it leads to reverse discrimination. -
24th Amendment
The 24th amendment abolished poll taxes which gave African American men the right to vote without causing them to pay a fee. Originally, this fee would prevent many African Americans from voting which would have given them less of a say in the government. -
Civil Rights of 1964
The 1964 Civil Rights Act was a landmark in legislative attempts to improve the quality of life for African Americans and other minority groups. The Civil Rights Act would abolish segregation and give African Americans the same rights as whites. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 gave African American men the right to vote under the 15th Amendment. This made it illegal to impose on any restrictions that would forbid African Americans from voting and having a say in government. -
Poll Taxes
Poll Taxes were implimented in order to restrict the 15th amendment and limit the amount of African American voters. The Poll Taxes made it so that whites would have an upper hand in the elections. -
Loving v Virginia
This case deals with interracial marriages. When Loving a white man, married his high school sweet heart, a black woman, in DC it was legal to do so. However, when they returned to Virginia, they were arrested and thrown into jail. Their case was taken to the supreme court, where it was determined tthat it was unconstitutional for states to ban interracial marriage. -
Robert Kennedy Speech in Indianapolis
After the death of Martin Luther King, Robert Kennedy broke the news of King's death to a large gathering of African Americans that evening in Indianapolis. People on Kennedy's campaign advised him against stopping at this spot because it was in a rough ghetto neighborhood, but Kennedy did not listen. When Kennedy gave the speech, the crowd was devestated that King had died, but was proud of what he had died for. -
Reed v Reed
This case is important because it is the first case to rule that sexual discrimination is a violation of the 14th amendment, (equal protection law). This case begun when there was argument over who should get the estate of a deceased person. Idaho law, used to rule that men get first preference over females. Because this case ruled that the Idaho law was in violation of the 14th, it gave feminists a foot in the door to argue for more rights for women. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was passed by Congress on March 22nd 1972, but never officially passed and put into the Constitution. The entire premise of this amendment was to create equal rights for both women and men. This is significant because it gave mention to discrimination against women, and feminists were able to make aware to the public of the serious problem of sexual inequality. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
This case was important to the evolution of our constitution because it was the first to challenge reverse discrimination. After student Bakke was rejected twice from U of C, he went first to state court and then to supreme court to petition his admission. Even though his grades were higher than some of the minorities students admitted to the school, he was not. This case determined that racial quotas met by universities are unconstitutional. -
Bowers v Hardwick
Bowers v Hardwick became a case when a Police Officer observed Hardwick performing sexual acts with his homosexual partner, which at the time was illegal. This case is significant in that it declared there was no constitutional protection against acts of sodomy, and gaves states the authority to outlaw homosexual's rights. It will later be overturned... -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilites Act prohibits discrimination against those with disabilites in regards to transportion, employment, housing, etc. Protection against those with disabilities did not come around until after rights for women and minorities had begun being fought for. This act helps primarily in the employment aspect, by ensuring that a job will not be lost because of an accident that makes you disabled. However, the person must be able to perform the p primary function of the job. -
Lawrence v. Texas
Lawrence v. Texas is similar in content to the Bowers v. Hardwick case, where gay sex is being tried as a crime. When the men were first taken to court, they were required to also register as sex offenders. However, unlike Bowers v. Hardwick, this case was able to argue successfully that homosexuals should be able to be intimate with one another, and that it is not unconstitutional to do so. This case was considered the most significant movement in gay rights. -
Fisher v Texas
Student Abigail Fisher sued the University of Texas after she applied, and was rejected. She, a white female, believed that she was experiencing reverse discrimination due to the fact that those with lower qualifications got in because they were minorities. This case is important because it challenges the Affirmative Action order from Kennedy, and forces the Supreme Court to make a stricter guideline on what "diverse" really is. -
Indiana Gay Rights
On September 9th, 2014, Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller appealed to the Supreme Court asking to overturn last weeks ruling that Indiana's ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional. He argues whether the Equal Protection Clause or the 14th amendment gives the states the right to decide if they should allow same sex marriage. This is significant because as of recently, there has been many different court orders on the subject of gay marriage, and whether it should be up to the states to decide
