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Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott, a slave, sued his owner for his freedom, after having resided in Illinois, where slavery was prohibited. The case made its way to the Supreme Court, where it was decided that African Americans were not citizens of the United States as defined by the Constitution at that time, thus Dred Scott had no standing to sue. Furthermore, the Court held that merely being brought into a free state would not have emancipated him. -
13th Amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment, which was drafted at the end of the Civil War, prohibits slavery or involuntary servitude (except as punishment for a crime) within the United States. It also gives Congress the power to enforce this provision of the Constitution. -
14th Amendment
Passed during the Reconstruction Era, the Fourteenth Amendment was drafted to guarantee equal civil and legal rights to Black citizens. In it due process and equal protection clauses were established, which would allow for the beginning of incorporating the Bill of Rights to the States. -
15th Amendment
The Fifteenth Amendment, also passed during Reconstruction, established the right of African Americans to vote. Despite this, the issue of voting rights for African Americans would continue into the twentieth century. -
Poll Taxes (1890s-1966)
Employed as a method to disenfranchise African Americans, poll taxes were a fee paid to vote. In some states, a "grandfather clause" existed to allow poor whites to vote, however no such exemptions were made for African Americans. The practice was outlawed with the Twenty-Fourth Amendment in 1964, though some states kept poll taxes until 1966. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
After having been arrested for sitting in a white-only train compartment, Homer Plessy challenged the constitutionality of 'separate but equal.' In Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court ruled that 'separate but equal' was constitutional. -
19th Amendment
Following years of fighting for suffrage, women were given the right to vote with the ratification of the nineteenth amendment. -
White Primaries
White Primaries were primary elections in which African Americans were not allowed to vote. This was made unconstitutional in 1944 with the Supreme Court's decision in Smith v. Allwright. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Oliver Brown’s daughter was forced to attend a school far away due to the segregation of schools. Brown filed a law suit, which the Courts rejected due to precedents set by Plessy v. Ferguson. The Supreme Court argued that separate but equal was not equal. The case ended segregation in schools and provided for desegregation in other public settings. -
24th Amendment
Following the ratification of the 15th Amendment, many Southern states established poll taxes and literacy tests to limit the ability of African Americans to vote. The 24th Amendment abolished poll taxes. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
President John F. Kennedy proposed that legislation be passed to address racial discrimination voting rights, public education, federal programs and more. After his assassination, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law a few hours after its proposal. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Passed under the enforcement clause of the Fifteenth Amendment, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed poll taxes, literacy tests, and other bureaucratic obstacles which attempted to keep African Americans from voting. -
Reed v. Reed
An Idaho law mandated the men must be preferred to women in estate affairs. Sally Reed challenged the law. The Supreme Court decided the law violated the Fourteenth Amendment. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment is a proposed amendment to the Constitution which establishes legal rights for Americans regardless of sex. The amendment has been ratified by thirty-eight states. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
In Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, Bakke was denied admission to the University of California due to their racial quota system, which mandated a certain number of minority students be admitted to the school. The Supreme Court ruled that the racial quota system violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
After being charged for having consensual homosexual relations, Michael Hardwick challenged the constitutionality of a Georgia law. The Supreme Court ruled the law was constitutional as "sodomy" was not protected by the Constitution. -
American with Disabilities Act
The American Disabilities Act of 1990 outlawed discrimination based on ability. It includes many of the same protections listed in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. President George H.W. Bush signed the bill into law. -
Motor Voter Act
The Motor Voter Act required states to offer simplified voter registration to anyone eligible who applies for a renewed driver's license. Bill Clinton passed the bill into law. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action is a set of policies which seeks to increase employment opportunities for minorities and women. It seeks to remedy prior discrimination and prevent future discrimination. -
Lawrence v. Texas
John Lawrence was charged under a Texas statute for having consensual homosexual sex. John Lawrence challenged the Texas statute as unconstitutional. The Court held that the law violated the Due Process of the Fourteenth Amendment. -
Obergfell v. Hodges
The Supreme Court case addressed States' bans on same-sex marriage. The Court held that it was a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment to ban same-sex marriage.
