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Dred Scott v. Sanford
Dred Scott was a slave in Missouri. For a while, he resided in free territories such as Illinois. When he went back to Missouri, he filed a suit for his freedom. The Supreme Court ruled that African Americans were not citizens of America, free or not, and they could not sue in court. It was also ruled that Congress could not ban slavery in the U.S. The significance of this case is that slaves were not considered U.S. citizens and cannot sue in Federal Court. -
13th Amendment
Banned slavery and indentured servitude except in the cases where it is used as a punishment for a crime of which the party has been convicted. -
14th Amendment
This amendment was one of the Reconstruction Amendments. It grants people the right to American citizenship and equal protection of the laws. This amendment outlines basic rights of American citizens and bans the states from denying any citizen their rights. The importance of this amendment is that it outlines the basic rights that are given to every citizen of the U.S. -
15th Amendment
Enfranchised all men, regardless of race or age. -
Poll Tax
These fees were enacted after the 15th Amendment was ratified to restrict voting rights on African Americans and poor whites. They were used in conjunction with literacy tests and intimidation to prevent black voters from making to the polls. (1877-1966) -
White Primaries
Elections held in the South, where only white Americans were allowed to vote. They were established by the state Democratic Party units or state legislatures in Southern States in the late 1800's. This was demonstrated in Smith v Allwright (1944) where "white primaries" were a tool favored in Texas politics. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
This court case is considered a landmark case. This became known as "separate but equal". It upheld the states' rights to pass laws allowing racial segregation in public or private institutions, like schools. This is significant because the South was still trying to keep discrimination, and disregard all of the anti-discrimination processes. They called it separate but equal, but in reality, everything was still segregated and not equal. -
19th Amendment
Prevented the state and federal government from denying people the right to vote on the basis of sex. -
Brown v, Board of Education
This case declared that states laws that called for "separate but equal" public schools for black and white students were unconstitutional because separate was inherently unequal. It struck down the earlier ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative action is a process designed to get rid of unlawful discrimination for applicants, for example school admission or employment. This process typically prevents discrimination against race, national origin, etc. It was created from Executive Order 10925 by JFK on March 6th, 1961 The significance of this process is that discrimination is now highly unlikely when it comes to admission, whether for school or for a job. -
24th Amendment
This amendment abolished poll tax for federal elections, which was a small tax that every voter had to pay in order for their vote to be submitted. This was significant because it disabled poor African Americans (and whites) from being able to vote for officials who can end discrimination. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Outlawed discrimination based on religion, race, sex, color, or national origin. This applies to discrimination at the polls, in employment, or in other public accommodations as well as segregation in schools. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This law was passed under president Lyndon Johnson. This act outlawed discriminatory voting practices, which were mainly in the South, for example being able to pass a literacy test in order to be able to vote. Practices like that were considered unconstitutional after the passing of this law. The significance of this act was that African Americans were now able to vote for the officials they believed could further get rid of discrimination. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
In 1982, the police were searching for Michael Hardwick and showed up to his home for not showing up to court for charges for public drinking.A roommate let the police in and they noticed Hardwick engaging in sexual conduct with another male, so they arrested both of them. Hardwick appealed to the Georgia Court because he believed that their constitutional rights were violated. The Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution does not protect the right of gay adults to engage in sexual conduct. -
Reed v. Reed
The dissimilar treatment of men and women was ruled unconstitutional when Sally and Cecil Reed's adopted son passed away and they both wanted to be administrators of their son's estate. -
Equal Rights Amendment
Guaranteed equal legal rights to all American citizens, regardless of sex. This was significant because women now were not discriminated against, when it came to voting. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
Ruled that race could not be used when considering college applicants, even if it allowed minorities the chance to take otherwise nonexistent opportunities. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
A Civil Rights law that prevents discrimination due to disability. -
Lawrence v. Texas
Struck down state laws prohibiting sodomy and made same-sex sexual relationships legal in the entire United States.
