-
Dred Scott v. Stanford
After Dred Scott tried for his freedom in Missouri, it was held that, by the fifth amendment, that he was still considered enslaved property, and did not have the standing to sue. In making this decision, the court ruled that parts of the Missouri Compromise of 1820 were unconstitutional. -
13th Amendment
Eight months after the end of the Civil War, the 13th Amendment was ratified to end the institution of slavery with the exception of situations of crime. It came after a shift in perspective of the war itself and several proposals from Congress. -
14th Amendment
Also known as the "Reconstruction Amendment", it institutionalized that all people born in the United States, including former slaves, were granted citizenship. It also stated that these persons were not to be denied "life, liberty, or property without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws". -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment sought that the federal government nor the states can deprive any citizen of their voting rights based on their race, which granted African American men the right to vote. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
After Louisiana passed the Separate Car Act, which separated blacks and whites on railway cars, Plessy's lawyers argued that the act violated the 14th Amendment. The Supreme Court upheld that the act was constitutional stating that Separation was allowed as long as both upended equal value. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment denied the federal or state government to restrict voting rights based on sex, allowing women the right to vote. -
White Primaries
White Primaries are another way states have limited the voting rights of African Americans, wherein the Democratic Party would exclude them from membership. This practice was ruled unconstitutional in Terry v. Adams. -
Brown v. Board of Education
This landmark case argued on whether the segregation seen in public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Supreme Court unanimously agreed that the inherently unequal nature of the act deemed it unconstitutional. -
24th Amendment
The 24th Amendment made poll taxes a non-requirement when voting. This meant that a citizen's vote or their voting rights would not be abridged if they did not pay the tax. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Proposed by Kennedy and then passed by Lyndon B. Johnson, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended segregation in public schools as well as discrimination in the workplace with the consideration of race, gender, religion, or origin. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Even after the passing of the 15th Amendment, several discriminatory practices were held when it came to voting. After years of activism and the Selma to Montgomery March, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was put in place to avoid the deviations made against giving African Americans the vote. -
Poll Taxes
Poll taxes were voting fees that voters had to pay in order for their vote to be considered eligible. They were initially used in the late 19th century as another barrier to keep African Americans from voting. They were then taken down as a non-requirement with the ratification of the 24th Amendment and finally put to rest 2 years later when the Supreme Court declared them unconstitutional. -
Reed v. Reed
This case argues whether the father or mother of a deceased adopted son could be named the administrator of his estate. After the father, Cecil, is appointed, the mother, Sally, sues. The Court said that the Idaho Probate Code, the act that favored Cecil to the estate, was unconstitutional as it went against the Equal Protection Clause. -
Equal Rights Amendment
This as of yet unratified amendment first introduced to Congress in 1923 proposed to guarantee equal rights to every citizen regardless of sex, prohibiting laws discriminating against women. It was passed in the Senate for State ratification in 1972. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
After an applicant for the University of California is rejected because of reserved minority slots, he sues on the grounds that the act of doing so violates the Equal Protection Clause. The court agreed, but also said that a college's use of race in the criterion for selection in constitutional. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
Michael Hardwick the constitutionality of consensual homosexual sodomy and the state laws it dealt with. The Court ruled that there was no constitutional protection for sodomy and that states had the right to outlaw it. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
Also known in shorthand as the ADA, it prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in regards to the workplace, transportation, access to state and federal programs, etc. -
Lawrence v. Texas
After two men in Texas were caught in a consensual sexual act, there were arrested under Texas' "Homosexual Conduct" law. This law was challenged as it could violate the 14th Amendment, and the Court ruled that the law did violate the Due Process Clause. -
Obergefell v. Hodges
This recent case challenged the licensing and acknowledgment of same-sex marriage. The Court ruled that the 14th Amendment and the Due Process Clause did require states to do both, and officially grants Constitutional marriage rights to same-sex couples. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action refers to any procedure designed to eliminate practices of applicant discrimination. It was first officially recognized in a 1961 executive order and was more recently upheld in the Supreme Court.
