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Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott was an enslaved man who filed a lawsuit in order to attain his freedom. Since he lived in a free state, he believed that he deserved to be free. His case was rejected by the Supreme Court as they decided that he wasn't able to sue due to his lack of citizenship. The case set the precedent that an African American was not considered a citizen if their ancestors were slaves brought by importation. -
13th Amendment
Slavery was officially abolished after the Civil War by the ratification of the 13th amendment. With its passing, the amendment would provide that no slavery or servitude should stand within the United States. The only circumstance would be in the case of punishment. -
14th Amendment
The fourteenth amendment gave every citizen the protection of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness because of the due process of law. This gave everyone the equal protection of the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights which applied amendments to the states and not just on the national level. The amendment also established the idea of natural-born citizenship. -
15th Amendment
The last amendment of the Reconstruction period, it gave the precedent that the federal and the state governments both did not have the justification to prohibit voting based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It provided that freed slaves would be able to vote. -
Jim Crow Era
Jim Crow laws were actions taken to try enforce racial segregation throughout the South. They tried to disenfranchise black Americans by whatever means necessary. Typically, the era did not have a specific ending date but it was put generally to an end with the Brown v. Board of Education case. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy sat inside of an all white train car and was arrested because of it. He argued that the separation within the train was in violation of the fourteenth amendment. The Supreme Court, however, decided that the "separate but equal" provisions were justified as they withstood equal protection. Because of this, the Jim Crow laws were allowing for continued segregation. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment allowed women the right to vote on a national level. It also had the ability to prevent states from denying voting rights based off on gender. It was a major event for the progression of voting rights but still couldn't sustain the ability of women of color to be able to vote. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was proposed but never ratified. It was designed to offer Constitutional legal protections for women regarding the issue of gender inequality. This would protect for divorce, owning property, opportunities for jobs, etc.. People still argue for the passing of the amendment today. -
Brown v Board of Education of Topeka
The decision that "separate but equal" was justified within the Plessy v Ferguson case was overturned within the case of Brown v Board. The Supreme Court made the decision that the fourteenth amendment protected black Americans from segregation. It is considered the beginning of the Civil Rights movement and the integration of black Americans into society. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act officially prohibited discrimination based upon race, sex, color, religion, or national origin. Proposed by JFK and signed into law by Lyndon B Johnson, it was difficult to pass due to the reluctancy from white legislators and leadership but effectively took the Civil Rights movement to the next level. -
Affirmative Action
It was the concept that meant to give employment and educational opportunity. In order to promote diversity and offer opportunities to citizens, affirmative action had employers and educators looking for qualified minorities to fill positions. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Also signed by Lyndon B Johnson, the act prohibited limitations on voting. This protected people against literacy test, poll taxes, etc. that were usually aimed at black Americans. Protests were the main reason for the act being passed. Black citizens after the act was written into law were allowed to have much higher rates of voting registration. -
Reed v Reed
After they had separated, an ex wife and husband both wanted to have possession of their passed son's land. The Idaho Probate Code stated that men had preference in this type of case to which Mrs. Reed believed disregarded the equal protections clause. The court agreed with Mrs. Reed was in the right and legal proceedings could not have sex be the determining factor. -
Regents of the University of California v Bakke
Bakke was rejected from University of California and sued on the grounds that he was being unfairly treated due to his race. Only sixteen non-white students were allowed in the school, but Bakke had better scores than all of the sixteen that were admitted over him. The supreme court decided that since race was being used to decide admission, then it was unconstitutional. -
Bowers v Hardwick
Michael Hardwick was engaging in sodomy and was arrested in the state of Georgia. He argued that the laws pertaining to sodomy were unconstitutional. The court ultimately decided that sodomy was not explicitly stated in the Constitution and states could outlaw it. Eventually, this would be overturned by Lawrence v Texas. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The act was signed by George HW Bush and established accomodations for people with disabilities. It provided ramps, railings, handicap parking, etc.. The rollout, however, was extremely slow in the case that it took a very long time for buildings to conform to that law. -
Motor Voter Act
The Motor Voter Act created a simpler voter registration process in which it allowed anyone with their drivers license to register. As it was signed by Bill Clinton, it was meant to create an ability for citizens with disadvantages to vote more easily. -
Lawrence v Texas
While engaging in sexual relations with another man, Lawrence was in violation of Texas law. As he was convicted, he argued that the law was in violation of the constitution. In a different manner than Bowers v Hardwick, the supreme court decided that Lawrence was in the right. The criminalization of sexuality was unconstitutional under the due process clause. -
Obergefell v Hodges
Between the Equal protection clause and the due process clause, same-sex marriage was not unconstitutional. The supreme court ruled that marriage was protected under the constitution even though it wasn't explicitly mentioned. All states must now provide marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
