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Dred Scott v. Sandford
Scott was a slave in MO who resided in a free state. When he returned to MO he filed a suit claiming residence in free territory made him free. The Supreme Court voted in favor of Sandford, holding that an African American, free or enslaved, could not be an American citizen, and was not permitted to sue in federal court. Scott was treated as property under the 5th Amendment. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 was deemed unconstitutional because it deprived a slave owner of property. -
13th Amendment
Ratified by the states on December 6, 1865, this amendment abolished slavery or involuntary servitude except for the punishment of a crime that the party was rightfully convicted for. This amendment was the first mention of slavery in the constitution. -
14th Amendment
This amendment addresses citizenship of the United States. It gives all people born in the US citizenship. Citizens are also all guaranteed equal protection of the laws. This equal protection clause became a very important part of later cases in Supreme Court. -
15th Amendment
This is one of the three amendments made to the Constitution after the Civil War. The purpose of this amendment was to ensure that men were not being denied the right to vote simply based on their race. Congress was given the power to enforce through legislation. In theory, the 15th Amendment allowed former slaves to elect people to represent them, working towards equal rights. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
LA enacted the Separate Car Act, requiring separate cars for blacks and whites. Plessy, who was black under the law, sat in a “whites only” car of a train and was told to vacate the white-only car. He refused and was arrested. The 13th and 14th Amendments were called into question. The decision was in favor of Ferguson because the state could enforce this law as it affected railroads within its boundaries. SCOTUS held that separate treatment did not imply the inferiority of African Americans. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment granted American women the right to vote. The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 launched the movement for women’s rights. Women’s suffrage became the centerpiece of the women’s rights movement. Activists raised public awareness through various actions, for example protests, to raise public awareness and lobby the government to grant women’s suffrage. This worked towards the goal of equality and America, and provided women with more representation in the government. -
White Primaries
White primaries were primary elections that excluded African Americans from voting. It left them without much of a say in important elections of the mostly Democratic South. -
Brown v. Board of Education
In this case, African American students had been denied admittance to certain public schools based on laws allowing public education to be segregated by race.They argued that such segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The plaintiffs were denied relief in the lower courts based on Plessy v. Ferguson. The conclusion was that “separate but equal” educational facilities are inherently unequal and violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative action policies are when an institution or organization engages in efforts to improve opportunities for historically excluded groups in America. These policies often focus on employment and education. Critics argue that it may be unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Supporters argue that diversity is necessary in order to compensate for centuries of oppression. -
24th Amendment
In 1964, the 24th amendment abolished the poll tax, a tax paid by each voter in order to cast a vote, for all federal elections. African Americans in the South experienced significant discrimination but could not vote for officials that could end this discrimination because of poll taxes. The 24th amendment ended the prevention of the poor African Americans and whites people from voting. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This Act was a crucial piece of legislation in American history. It outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin and ended segregation in public places. -
Poll Taxes
Poll taxes were placed to prevent African Americans from voting, but also prevented poor whites for voting. The 15th amendment protected the rights of citizens to vote in elections, this did not stop creative measures specifically tailored against African Americans who by the constitution are entitled to their vote. Poll taxes were eventually prohibited from the passing of the 24th amendment in 1964. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This act was signed to outlaw the discriminatory voting practices adopted in the southern states. African Americans in the south had many obstacles when voting, including poll taxes, literacy tests, and other restrictions, so few were registered giving them little political power. It was one of the most significant statutory changes in the relationship between the Federal and state governments in the area of voting. Because of this act, the number of black voters increased substantially. -
Reed v. Reed
This case was extremely important as it was the first time that the Supreme Court upheld a claim of gender discrimination. The court unanimously held that unequal treatment of men and women was unconstitutional and was forbidden by the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. -
Equal Rights Amendment
After the 19th amendment was passed, that allowed women to vote, in 1920, the ERA was introduced in 1923. The ERA was designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex; it seeks to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment, and other matters. In 1972, the ERA was passed by congress and sent to states for ratification but was only ratified by 35 states and need 38 to be put in the constitution. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
Bakke, a white man, was rejected from the University of California Medical School twice because the school reserved 16 places in each class for “qualified” minorities to redress minority exclusions. Bakke’s qualifications exceeded those of the minority students. He argued this contradicted the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Court decided in favor of Bakke and declared affirmative action constitutional but invalidated the use of racial quotas. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
Michael Harwick was observed by a Georgia officer committing homosexual sodomy. Harwick was charged with violating a Georgia statute that criminalized sodomy. The conclusion was that there was no constitutional protection for acts of sodomy and that states could outlaw those practices. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers and public areas to provide necessary accommodations for the disabled. It prohibits discrimination against those with disabilities. -
Lawrence v. Texas
Texas had a law prohibiting two people of the same sex from engaging in intimate sexual conduct. However, the Supreme Court ruled that this was a violation of the men's rights and the right to liberty under the Due Process clause gives them the ability to engage in the conduct, and the government cannot intervene.
