-
Historical Event - Emancipation Proclamation
*Signed by President Lincoln
*Freed all slaves in states that had seceded from the Union -
Period: to
Civil Rights Timespan
-
Amendments - 13th
*Abolished slavery in the U.S.
*Step forward in equality for American citizens. -
Amendments - 15th
*Granted African-American men the right to vote in the U.S.
*Right to vote for U.S citizens cannot be denied because of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. -
Amendments - 19th
*Guaranteed American women the right to vote.
*Step forward in equality for not just men, but also women. -
Legislation - Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944
*Signed into law by President FDR; also known as GI Bill.
*Provided WWII veterans funds for college education, unemployment insurance, and housing. -
SC Cases - Hernandez v Texas
*Hernandez was convicted of murder, but he complained of a racially impartial jury. Supreme Court rules in favor of Hernandez, and he's retried with a jury composed without regard to ethnicity.
*Jury mustn't be chosen with regard to defendant's ethnicity. -
SC Cases - Brown v Board of Education
*A little girl's parents sue the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, because their daughter wasn't being allowed to attend the all white school in their neighborhood. Supreme Court ruled segregation illegal in public schools.
*Forced the desegregation in public schools around the U.S. -
Historical Event - Rosa Parks, Bus Boycott
*An African-American woman named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man.
*She was arrested and local civil rights activists started the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which led to the Suprem Court ruling the law unconstitutional and integrated transportation. -
Historical Event - "I Have A Dream Speech"
*Martin Luther King Jr. delivered this famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during a Civil Rights rally.
*He was spreading a message of equality and judging one by character, not by the color of their skin. -
Amendments - 24th
*Outlawed poll taxes as a voting requirement in federal elections.
*Step forward in equality with rights, because not everyone could afford to pay a poll tax. -
Legislation - Civil Rights Act of 1964
*Debated in Senate for 83 days.
*Outlawed discrimination in public accomadations and at work. -
Historical Event - Selma, Alabama (Bloody Sunday)
*About 600 civil rights marchers marched from Selma to Montgomery in peaceful protest, but were attacked by state and local police with clubs and tear gas.
*They were marching to protest voting rights. -
Legislation - Voting Rights Act 1965
*Signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson.
*Outlawed discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War. -
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965
*Signed by President Lyndon Johnson at the foot of the Statue of Liberty.
*Abolished the national origins quota system and replaced it with a preference system that focused on immigrants' skills and family relationships with citizens or U.S. residents. -
Legislation - Civil Rights Act of 1968
*Also known as the Open Housing Act.
*Prevents anyone to refuse to sell or rent a dwelling based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disabiltiy, and having children. -
Legislation - Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986
*Signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, in order to control and deter illegal immigration into the U.S.
* Legalized illegal aliens who had been continuously unlawfully present since 1982; legalized certain agricultural workers; gave sanctions to employers who purposefully hired undocumented aliens; increased enforcement at U.S. borders. -
SC Cases - Grutter v Bollinger
*Barbara Grutter was denied admission to the University of Michigan Law School based on a racial quota system that was implemented for affirmative action.
*Supreme Court ruled that "race-conscious admissions policies must be limited in time". -
Extension - Marriage Equality
Marriage Equality Wins in Maine*28th Amendment ratified into the Constitution.
*Guarantees the right for same sex couples to get married in the U.S. and receive the same benefits as a heterosexual couple does. -
Extension - Better Universal Health Care
*All U.S. citizens have access to universal health care. Taxes would be raised but would ultimately benefit the country and it's people.
*Access to medical attention ties into the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. -
Extension - Women's Rights/Gender Equality
*Women and men should receive an equal amount of pay for the same job, especially if they both have similar experience and qualifications.
*The gender of an individual shouldn't affect his/her pay.
