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Gave momentum to the anti-slavery movement and served as a stepping stone to the civil war. With the outrage from abolitionists, the North and South became more divided which created secession from southern states and created the confederate states. The result of Scott's case didn't just cause chaos but rather a step towards freedom with the creation of the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves in the confederacy and eventually the creation of the 13th amendment officially abolishing slavery.
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Considering America never addressed slavery in any document at the time, the abolishment of slavery in the United States was the first action recognizing that slavery violated the promised freedoms of liberty and equality.
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The 14th amendment has granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States which included former slaves. This guaranteed all citizens equal protection of the laws. It also prevented states from jeopardizing individuals freedoms due to the incorporation of the due process law. This incorporation of the 14th amendment has been used in many cases to secure an individuals freedom as an American.
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This was the first amendment addressing the rights of voting which ensured that states were not denying men the right to vote based on their race.
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Beginning in the 1890's, poll taxes were a legal voting fee to keep African Americans from voting in southern states which caused outrage due to it violating the 15th amendment.
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Addressed the constitutionality of racial segregation under the separate but equal doctrine. The court argued that his constitutional rights were not violated and that a law that implies legal distinction between whites and blacks was constitutional.
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In the 1920's, southern states began using white primaries in order to limit African Americans right to vote. The democratic party in many states adopted a rule that excluded them from a party membership, therefore allowing the whites to run the results of the primary election. Finally, in the Smith v. Allwright case, it ruled that white primaries were a violation of the fifteenth amendment which prohibited voting discrimination based on race.
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After a long battle of the women's suffrage movement, the United States finally granted women the right to vote, prohibiting anyone be denied their right to vote based on their sex.
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A landmark case that declared the doctrine of "separate but equal" unconstitutional. Students of color in America would no longer be forced by law to attend under-resourced black-only schools.
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The executive branch began using affirmative action in hiring and admission processes in order to create equal opportunities for the disadvantaged groups. Since the beginning use of affirmative action,the supreme court has ruled on several cases debating whether affirmative action is constitutional or not.
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Ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination that was based on race, color, religion, or sex. This was considered one of the biggest achievements of the civil rights movement.
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This act ensured the protection of the 15 amendment by overcoming barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote
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Outlawed the poll tax as a voting requirement which further ensured Americans access to their freedom.
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The supreme court ruled that the constitution does not protect the right of gay adults to engage in private sodomy.
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First time in history that the court applied the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to strike down a law that discriminated against women.
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This constitutional amendment prohibits denying equal rights under law by the United States or any state based on sex. This ensures that federal programs and federal resources benefit men and women equally.
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This was the first case to define the difference between the unconstitutionality of the University's use of racial "quotas" in its admission process versus a school's use of "affirmative action" to accept more minority applicants was constitutional in some cases.
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Ensured that Americans with disabilities are fully capable citizens and as such entitled to legal protections that guarantee them equal opportunity and access to the American life.
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The supreme court ruled that state laws banning homosexual sodomy are unconstitutional as a violation of the right to privacy. It also overturned a Texas anti-sodomy law as violation of of the right to privacy and equal protection clause of the fourteenth amendment.
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A landmark cased that ruled that state bans on same-sex marriage and on recognizing same-sex marriages is unconstitutional under the equal protection and due process law in the fourteenth amendment.
