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14th Amendment
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Dred Scot Decision
The Supreme Court case Dred Scott v. Sandford argued that a black slave who had spent time with his master in the free states of Wisconsin and Illinois should be considered a free man. The Supreme Court decided that Scott wasn't free because the US Constitution didn't consider blacks property and not people. Because of this Scott's master could not lose Scott without due process of law. This ruling would later be made unconstitutional by the 14th amendment. -
End of the Civil War
April 9, 1865 marked the end of the Civil war and start of the reconstruction period. When the war ended the North knew that they needed to protect the rights of freed black slaves or else everything would go back to the way it was before the war. -
14th Amendment is Submitted to States
In June of 1866, the 14th Amendment the voted on and passed by the House and Senate and submitted to the states for ratification. Southern states opposed the amendment but Congress required them to ratify the 13th and 14th amendments in order to gain equal representation in Congress. -
First State to Ratify the 14th Amendment
On June 30, 1866 Connecticut became to first state to ratify the 14th Amendment. It was followed shortly after New Hampshire and Tennessee in July 1866. -
Ratification of 14th Amendment
On July 9, 1868 the 14th Amendment was ratified when Louisiana and South Carolina both voted to ratify the amendment. This gave the amendment the two-thirds of votes that it needed to become law. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Supreme Court case in 1896 that segregation in public schools did not violate the protection clause in the 14th amendment as long as the schools were "separate but equal." -
Brown v. Board of Education
In the Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education the court ruled that segregation in public schools violated the equal protection clause in the 14th amendment. This overturned the ruling in the Supreme Court case in Plessy v. Ferguson allowing segregation in schools. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Abolished Jim Crow laws outlawing segregation or discrimination in public areas. -
Loving v. Virginia
Loving v. Virginia was a Supreme Court case on interracial marriage. Many states still had laws prevent the marriage of people from different races. The Supreme Court ruled that laws against interracial marriage violated the equal protection clause stating that the law was rooted in racial discrimination. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke.
In 1978 a case between the University of California and Allen Bakke reached the supreme court. The University of California Medical School reserves 16 spots each year for minority students. Bakke who was denied to the school even though he had higher test scores than all 16 students both years sued stating he was denied access to the program because of his race. The supreme court ruled that the university violated the 14th amendment and ordered that the school admit Bakke to their program.
