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Dred Scott v Sandford
Dred Scott, a slave of John Sandford, lived in Missouri. After having been brought to the Louisiana Territory, where slavery was outlawed by the Missouri Compromise of 1820, Scott sued for freedom.
The SCOTUS ruled that as a man imported from Africa, enslaved or free, he could not be an American citizen, and so didn't have standing in court. Furthermore, the Missouri Compromise was invalidated, as any law that took away property (slaves) without due process was unconstitutional. -
13th Amendment
Ratified by the states on December 6th 1865, the 13th Amendment outlaws slavery in the United States entirely. It reads:
"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment, passed after the 13th, aimed to provide greater protections to freed slaves. It guaranteed citizenship to all people born in the US, and made sure every man 21 years of age was allowed to vote. It prevented all those who broke their oath of loyalty to the union from holding office, and made sure the Union wouldn't take on the debts of the Confederacy. Section 5 made sure Congress had the power to enforce the Amendment. -
15th Amendment
After Southern states infringed on the right of African Americans to vote, as established by the 14th Amendment, Congress passed the 15th Amendment. Section 1 read:
"The right of citizens of the United States 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."
Section 2 gave Congress the power to enforce these rules. -
Plessy v Ferguson
In the case of Plessy v Ferguson, Separate Car Act of Louisiana was being challenged. Plessy, technically a black man by Louisiana law sat in the whites-only train car. When Plessy was told to vacate the car, he refused, and was arrested and convicted under Louisiana law.
The SCOTUS held that the law was constitutional. Justice Brown conceded that while the 14th Amendment intended to establish equality, separate treatment didn't imply inferiority. -
19th Amendment
The Women's Rights Movement culminated in the 19th Amendment, which states the following:
"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation." -
Brown v Board of Education
In Brown v Board of Education, African American students were denied admission to schools under state laws allowing race-based segregation in schools. These students argued that these segregation laws violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. They were denied based on Plessy v Ferguson.
The SCOTUS ruled that the "Separate but Equal" was inherently unequal, and that segregation in schools violated the 14th Amendment. -
Poll Taxes
Poll taxes required that all people intending to vote in a national election pay a set amount of money. While put in many of the original colonies, and some northern states to raise revenue, they were placed in many Southern states to prohibit African Americans, who were generally poor, from voting. -
24th Amendment
"The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax." -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
A key success in the story of the Civil Rights Movement, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the brainchild of John F Kennedy. Following Kennedy's assassination in 1963, President Lyndon Johnson pushed for the passage of the bill. The bill prevented discrimination on the basis of sex and race in hiring, promotions, and firing, thus ending the era of "Jim Crow" laws. -
White Primaries
In the South, as part of the Jim Crow movement, party primaries were often restricted to whites only. This led to the inability of African Americans to choose the candidates they would be voting on, disenfranchising their vote. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 ended multiple discriminatory voting practices that were taking place, especially in the South. Among these practices are literacy tests, the grandfather clause, white primaries, and multiple other bureaucratic policies. -
Reed v Reed
The Idaho Probate Code specified that males would be the primary inheritors of an estate over females. After the death of their son, Sally and Cecil Reed, who were separated, both fought for the inheritance, and after Cecil was named administrator, Sally sued in court.
The SCOTUS decided that the discrimination was unconstitutional, and that this law was the exact thing that the Equal Protection Clause was made to prevent. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the Constitution. After Senate Approval in 1972, the ratification deadline was March 1979, upon which the proposed amendment received approval from 35 of the 38 states required. The Amendment would've end any legal distinctions between men and women. -
Regents of the University of California v Bakke
Allan Bakke, and 35-year-old white man had applied twice to the University of California Medical School at Davis, being rejected both times. The school set aside 16 spots of 100 for those of "qualified minorities" to redress longstanding exclusions. Bakke, however, had higher qualifications than every minority student admitted, and so he challenged the University in Court.
The SCOTUS, via a plurality, ordered U of C to admit Bakke, as it violated the CRA of 1964, yet was not unconstitutional. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative action is a movement to correct the injustices against minorities. Starting in the late 1970s, Affirmative Action became a political controversy, with conservative republicans taking stabs at laws and policies based on it. -
Bowers v Hardwick
Michael Hardwick was observed having intimate same-sex relations in the bedroom of his own home. After being changed for breaking a Georgia statute against homosexual sex, Hardwick challenged the constitutionality. The appeals court reversed the decision, on the basis that the Georgia law was unconstitutional.
The SCOTUS held that there was no constitutional protection for sodomy, and that the appeals court had taken the Constitution too loosely. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits public discrimination on the basis of a disability, to make sure that those with disabilities have the same rights as anyone else. The law applies in jobs, schools, transportation, and any other public places, or private places with public access. -
National Voter Registration Act of 1993
The National Voter Registration Act required that access to voter registration be a much simpler process. Voter registration can be acquired when applying for a driver's license, applying for public assistance, and a few other conditions. The USPS must also mail election materials for free. The bill was passed May 20, 1993, but didn't go into effect until January 1 1995. -
Lawrence v Texas
After a report of a weapons disturbance, Texas police went to the house of John Lawrence, and found him engaging in sex with another man. They were convicted of violating Texas' law against homosexual relations, and the State Court of Appeals held that verdict, citing Bowers v Harding.
The SCOTUS held that the Texas law violated the Due Process Clause, and that Texas has no legitimate interest in barring same-sex relations, effectively overturning Bowers v Harding. -
Obergefell v Hodges
In Obergefell v Hodges, multiple groups of same-sex couples challenged their states' laws barring same-sex marriage. The plaintiffs (Obergefell) argued that these laws violated the Equal Protections, and Due Process Clauses. Only the US 6th Circuit favored the states' laws.
The SCOTUS held that the Due Process Clause guarantees the right to marry, and that it applies in the same way to both heterosexual and homosexual couples. The Equal Protection Clause was also determined to protect this.
