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The Dred Scott case was a long fight for freedom fought by an enslaved man. his name obviously being Dred Scott. This case is one of the most infamous cases that dealt with slavery. In the end, Dred Scott lost the case on the account of supreme court chief justice Roger Taney claiming that enslaved people didn't count as citizens of the United states, so they couldn't sue for freedom.
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This is the amendment that abolished slavery. It was signed by Abraham Lincoln on February 1st, 1865 and also gave congress the power to enforce this article with legislation.
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It stated that all people born in the United States are citizens of the country. This guarantee's slaves born in the U.S. citizenship and equal protection of laws under the constitution.
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This amendment guaranteed African American men the right to vote. It can also be known as what sparked things like voting tests and voter suppression as white people didn't want former slaves or anyone of color really, citizen of the country or not to have the ability vote.
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to start with, Louisiana created the Separate Car Act, segregated railway cars. Homer Plessy who was 7/8 Caucasian but was deemed black under Louisiana law tested it by sitting in a whites only car. He was arrested and the supreme court ruled in favor of the Act and stated "separate treatment did not imply the inferiority of African Americans. The Court noted that there was not a meaningful difference in quality between the white and black railway cars" (oyez).
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the right to vote can not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or by any State on account of sex. essentially it gave women the right to vote and it was ratified on August 18, 1920. However, it is important to note that African American women were not permitted to vote in practice until the voting act of 1965.
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White primaries were primary elections held in the Southern States where only white voters were allowed to participate. One of the bigger states that allowed this was Texas and in the supreme court case of Smith v. Allwright the supreme court stuck down the law as it contributed to voter suppression and violated the 14th amendment and it was decided on Apr 3, 1944.
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This Case had to do with the segregation in the school system and how people of color were prohibited from going to white schools. The Supreme Court declared that “separate but equal” was actually unequal and violated the protections of the Equal Protection part of the Fourteenth Amendment. they also stated that the segregation of public education based on race instilled inferiority and had a incredibly negative effects on the education and growth of African American children.
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Affirmative action was started by President Lyndon Johnson in 1963. He initiated it, in order to improve life for African Americans. Furthermore, it was created to protect minorities and women against discrimination in education, employment, and social benefits. It has was influenced by the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment
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Poll taxes is essentially a fixed money amount per person given to adults and often linked to the right to vote. Furthermore, payment of a poll tax was actually a prerequisite for the registration of voting. It was also a form a voter suppression. It was banned in the 24th amendment which was signed on January 23rd, 1964
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This amendment got rid of the poll tax many people were forced to pay if they wanted to cast their vote. It was signed by President Lyndon Johnson and ratified January 23rd, 1964. This was a win for civil liberties as many African Americans did not make a lot of money due to sparse job opportunities and racism. this meant they were most likely unable to pay the poll tax and was seen as a violation of rights as it was an example voter suppression.
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This act prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. It also forbid discrimination in public accommodations and federally funded programs and it helped support voting rights and the desegregation of schools.
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It outlawed the discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War ( Jim Crow laws ) like literacy tests. It also helped actually enforce the 15th amendment that many states had taken to ignoring.
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After the death of their son, both Sally and Cecil Reed sought to be named the administrator of their son's estate, however Idaho code stated that "males must be preferred over women". Sally, challenged this in court. In a unanimous decision the Supreme court ruled in favor of Sally as the code violated the equal protections clause of the 14th amendment.
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This Amendment is designed to create equal legal rights regardless of sex. This amendment essentially wants to end the legal distinctions between men and women in matters of divorce, property, employment, etc.... lastly, it is important to note that though it was proposed on March 22, 1972 it still has yet to be ratified.
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Allan Bakke, a white man was rejected twice from a California medical school, as the school had 16 reserved seats for minority groups for affirmative action. he went to court as his qualifications exceeded those in the minority seats and he felt that he was only rejected due to his race. the decision was a tie as justice Powell agreed with both points made by the other justices. In the end Bakke was admitted to the school and affirmative action was kept in place to stop the inequality.
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Michael Hardwick was seen by a Georgia police officer while while having consensual sex with another adult male in the bedroom of his home. he was charged and decided to fight it in court. In the end the Supreme court held that it wasn't against the law as the constitution had no protections for sodomy. It is important to know though that the court overruled this decision in Lawrence v. Texas, (2003).
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It is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. Furthermore, it forbids discrimination in employment, transportation, public accommodations, communications and access to state/local government programs/services.
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while Houston police were responding to a reported weapons disturbance they entered John Lawrence's apartment and saw him and another adult man, having consensual sex. they were arrested and convicted as they were in violation of a Texas statute forbidding two persons of the same sex to engage sexual activities. In a 6-3 decision the court decided that the statue violated the Due Process Clause and that the Texas government had no right to arrest or convict them.
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Groups of same-sex couples sued their states in Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee to challenge the constitutionality of their bans on same-sex marriage or refusal to recognize legal same-sex marriages. the Supreme Court held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees the right to marry whoever you want to regardless of sex. Also, precedent held that the right to marry is a fundamental liberty because it is fundamental to the concept of autonomy.
