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Dred Scott v. Sandford
The Supreme court ruled that African Americans (free or slave) could not sue in federal courts, because they weren't American citizens. The rights of slave owners were protected by the 5th because slaves were considered property. This case was argued because Dred Scott escaped slavery and fled to another state to gain freedom. -
13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment abolished slavery. Abraham Lincoln put it into place because the Emancipation Proclamation had too many issues assuring the end of slavery. The 13th Amendment states: “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 stated all the qualifications of being a US citizen. A state cannot deprive any person of 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 gave African-American males the right to vote. This is because the Amendment states that citizens cannot be denied the right to vote due to race, color or previous condition of servitude. Put into place because of Southern states that interfered with African American's ability to vote. -
Plessy v Ferguson
Plessy who was 7/8 white decided to test the separate cars act although he was black under Louisiana law. When Plessy was asked to vacate the car, he refused and he was arrested. The court agreed the law was constitutional.The vote ended up as 7-1. -
White Primaries
These were primary elections that were held only for the participation of white voters. This was just another way whites were trying to prevent minorities from voting. In 1944, the Supreme Court ruled 8–1 in Smith v. Allwright that white primaries are unconstitutional. -
Poll Taxes
Poll taxes were a fine one had to pay to vote. By 1908 all of the southern states did this to prevent African Americans from voting. Whites had the ability though to use the "grandfather clause" to exempt them from the fee. The grandfather clause gave poor whites the ability to vote if they had an ancestor that had voted before the Civil War. Poll taxes came to an end with the 24th amendment. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote. It prohibits the limitation of voting based on sex. This was the shining moment for the Women's Suffrage Movement which had been going strong for almost a century. -
Brown v Board of Education
This case came into place due to the segregation of schools. African American students were being denied admittance to public schools because of laws that allowed public education to be segregated by race. Brown won this case due that fact that separate but equal educational facilities for racial minorities is unequal. -
Bowers v Hardwick
Hardwick was caught by Georgia police officer engaging in homosexual activities. The divided Court found that there was no constitutional protection for acts of sodomy, and that states could outlaw those practices. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative action was an outcome of the civil rights movement. It was created to provide equal opportunities for members of minority groups and women in education and employment. This has helped improve African Americans chances at jobs and has increased acceptance rates for colleges. -
24th Amendment
The 24th Amendment eliminates the Poll Tax. The right to vote "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
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended segregation in public places and banned employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. This act is widely regarded as one of the most important events of the civil rights movement. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed the discriminatory voting practices that were implemented, mainly in southern states. Practices such as literacy tests limited Voting based on race. This act also limited the "harassment, intimidation, economic reprisals, and physical violence when they tried to register or vote." -
Reed V. Reed
The Idaho Probate Code specified that "males must be preferred to females" in appointing administrators of estates. Administrators of estates: someone who handles a will, when the person is deceased and left no will. So, divorced Sally sued the court and it went to the Supreme Court and they ruled unanimously for Sally Reed. Advanced Women's rights. -
Regents of the University of California v Bakke
Allan Bakke was a white man that applied to go the the University of California twice. He ended up being rejected twice. The school reserved sixteen places in each entering class of one hundred for "qualified" minorities. Bakke found out he was not accepted based off of race. They ended up being in favor of Bakke, but also supported that schools have spots for minorities. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment guarentees equal rights for all American citizens based on sex. "It seeks to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment, and other matters." -
Americans with Disabilities Act
This law prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and public and private places that are open to the general public. This gives equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications. -
Lawrence V. Texas
Police responded to a disturbance in a private household, Houston police went to John Lawrence's apartment and saw him and another man, Tyron Garner, engaging in a private, consensual sexual act. "Lawrence and Garner were arrested and convicted of deviate sexual intercourse in violation of a Texas statute forbidding two persons of the same sex to engage in certain intimate sexual conduct." 6-3 in the Supreme Court, ruled that Texas cannot do that due to Due Process Clause
