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Dread Scott v. Sanford
Dred Scott, a slave in Missouri, sued for his freedom on the grounds that he had lived for a time in a "free" territory. The Court ruled against him, saying that under the Constitution, he was his master's property. At the same time, the Court also ruled that the Missouri Compromise (1821) -- under which Missouri was admitted to the union as a slave state,was unconstitutional because it deprived slave owners of property. -
Muller v Oregon
Unanimously, the Supreme Court upheld an Oregon state law limiting women to working no more than ten hours a day (which was not the case for men). This ruling was negative in that it expressed an opinion of inequality between men and women. Claiming that the ruling was set in place to "protect" women, this result only upheld the patriarchal ideal that women are the lesser sex. However, Muller v. Oregon did ignite some positive consequences. -
Shelly v Kraemer
The justices ruled that a court may not constitutionally enforce a "restrictive covenant" which prevents people of certain race from owning or occupying property. -
Hernandez v Texas
the Supreme Court held that equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment extends beyond a “two-class theory” of differences between black and white individuals, but includes protections for any individual who is a member of a group singled out for discriminatory treatment, regardless of national origin or descent. -
Griswald v Conneticuit
This landmark ruling established a right to privacy within a marriage, even though this was not explicitly guaranteed in the Constitution. Married women were granted the undeniable right to use contraceptives by the right to privacy. While this ruling did not address the question of use contraception outside of marriage, it was a step in the right direction for women’s rights. -
Loving v Virginia
the Court struck down state laws which prohibited inter-racial marriage and held that marriage was a fundamental right. -
Reed v Reed
A couple that had separated lost their son who did not leave a will. The man and woman, Sally and Cecil Reed, were battling over control of their son’s estate. An Illinois law stated that "males must be preferred to females" when dealing with appointing estate administrators and so Cecil Reed was named administrator of the estate. This specification was found undeniably gender bias and the Court held that the law’s dissimilar treatment of men and women was unconstitutional. -
San Antonio v Rodrigues
the Court upheld the school financing plan, based on local property taxes, of the San Antonio School district, which resulted in disparities in the quality of education. The Court declared that education is not a fundamental right and that wealth-based discrimination in the context of education did not violate the equal protection. -
United States v Lopez
the Supreme Court ruled that Congress had exceeded its constitutional authority under the Commerce Clause when it passed a law prohibiting gun possession in local school zones. The case arose out of the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990, which made it a federal offense "for any individual knowingly to possess a firearm at a place that the individual knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, is a school zone." -
Romer v Evans
on the other hand, the Court struck down as unconstitutional a Colorado state referendum approving an amendment to the state constitution that would have overturned local anti-bias laws. The Court held that the referendum was motivated by irrational bias against gays and lesbians and served no legitimate government interest, thus violating basic federal constitutional guarantees of equal protection. -
Boyscouts of America v Dale
the Court ruled that the Boy Scouts' First Amendment rights of free expression and association would be violated by enforcement of New Jersey's state antidiscrimination law to prohibit them from dismissing a gay Scoutmaster. -
Obergefell v Hodges
the Court struck down state bans on same-sex marriage, thereby granting the constitutional right to marry to LGBT Americans throughout the country
