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Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott, a slave from Missouri, lived in Illinois which was a free state. And then lived in the Louisiana territory which was free under the Missouri compromise in 1820. Scott moved back to Missouri and filed a suit claiming that since he lived in a free state, he should be considered a free man. In a seven to two decision, Scott lost. They held portions of the Missouri compromise unconstitutional under the fifth amendment which treated Scott as property rather than a person. -
13th amendment
The thirteenth amendment formally abolished slavery which was previously indirectly permitted by the constitution under the the three fifths compromise. Even though the amendment abolished slavery, it did not prevent others from oppressing African Americans.
Dec 6 1865. -
14th Amendment
The fourteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1868. This amendment granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States (including former slaves) and guaranteed all citizens “equal protection of the laws.” This amendment was significant as it was one of three amendments passed during the reconstruction era to abolish slavery. It would also serve as a reference for many supreme court cases in the future. -
15th Amendment
The fifteenth amendment states that no citizen of the United States regardless of race, color, or previous servitude should have their right to vote infringed upon. The 15th amendment mobilized the African-American community. Although this amendment formally granted black men the right to vote, states still sought their way around it. By the late 1870s states were implementing discriminatory practices to prevent African-Americans from voting -
Plessy v Ferguson
Plessy v ferguson was a landmark case where the supreme court upheld the constitutionality of segregation using the separate but equal doctrine. In 1892 an African American man, Homer Plessy, refused to sit in a car designated for colored people. Plessy claimed that his constitutional rights were being infringed upon. Plessy lost the case in a seven to one decision. It was ruled that state law was constitutional and that African Americans were not inferior but were separate. -
19th Amendment
The 19th amendment states that the government can not deny a citizen their right to vote based on sex. This amendment granted women the right to vote and was pushed forward by the women's suffrage movement. The first emerging groups for women's suffrage came about in 1869 and were led by Susan B. Anthony. These groups fought for universal suffrage by attempting to vote at polling places and filing lawsuits. Their movements would later lead the government to pass the 19th amendment in 1920 -
White Primaries
White primaries were elections held in the Southern United States where only white voters could participate. The white primary was one method used by southerners to disenfranchise most black and other minority voters. They also passed laws to raise barriers to voter registration further limiting minority rights. This was significant as these primaries negated everything the 15th amendment was supposed to guarantee for African american voters, and were seen as a major problem by the government -
Brown vs. Board of Education
Brown vs. Board of Education was a landmark supreme court case that ruled that schools could not be segregated based on race. This overturned the separate but equal precedent and was a huge win for the civil rights movement. Previously by plessy vs. ferguson, schools could be separate for blacks and whites as long as they provided “equal” facilities. Brown vs. Board overruled this and ensured equal access to education. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative action is a policy in which individuals of color, race, sex, religion, or national origin are taken into consideration to increase opportunities to an underrepresented part of society. Businesses and government entities use affirmative action to increase the number of workers from certain social and cultural backgrounds. It is used to include some groups who have had low representation in leadership. -
Poll taxes
A poll tax is a tax levied on every adult, without reference to income or resources.Poll taxes were most commonly used in the Confederate states, but were also used in colonial America. Poll taxes in the south were designed to inhibit African-American votes. They were made to only allow the elite to vote ensuring that their party would win a silencing the voice of the minority. Poll taxes stayed around for a while but were officially removed due to the 24th amendment in 1964. -
24th Amendment
The 24th amendment prohibited states from having poll taxes or any other type of taxes that provided a barrier to the right to vote. These kinds of taxes were previously made to discriminate against minorities who couldn’t afford to pay the taxes and therefore wouldn’t vote. Jan 23 1964 -
Civil Rights act of 1964
The civil rights act of 1964 prevented discrimination based on race. This included voting, as many states had laws in place making it harder for minorities to vote. It was originally proposed by JFK, but was then pushed forward by Lyndon B Johnson after the assassination of JFK. July 2 1964 -
Voting Rights act of 1965
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 attempted to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote as was guaranteed to them under the 15th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.15th amendment was supposed to officially enfranchise African Americans, states were using literacy tests, and other barriers to prevent African Americans from voting. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is significant as it limited these actions by certain states -
Reed v. Reed
Reed v. Reed was an equal protection case in which the supreme court ruled that the administrators of estates cannot be named in a way that discriminates between sexes. This was significant as the supreme court ruled for the first time that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment prohibited differential treatment based on sex. -
Equal Rights Amendment
The equal rights amendment is a proposed amendment that gives equal rights regardless of sex. It was introduced in 1923 by Alice Paul and Crystal Eastman but was never ratified by the 1979 deadline. 35 of the 38 states required ratified the amendment, but it ultimately didn’t get passed. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
A white man named Allan Bakke applied to the University of California twice and was denied both times, even when his GPA and test scores were higher than most applicants. Bakke sued the university stating that the university violated the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The court ruled that the school’s use of “affirmative action” was constitutional, but the use of quotas to accept minorities was unconstitutional. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
Bowers vs Hardwick upheld a Georgia law stating that homosexual intercourse was illegal. Chief justice Warren E. Burger stated that “To hold that the act of homosexual sodomy is somehow protected as a fundamental right would be to cast aside millennia of moral teaching.” This decision was later directly overturned under Lawrence vs. Texas, but was even earlier repealed by Georgia. -
Americans with Disabilities act
The Americans with disabilities act became law in 1990 and required equal access of public areas to all people with disabilities. This act is famous for being an unfunded mandate, a mandate that isn’t funded by money from the government. It also guaranteed equal employment opportunities for those with disabilities and required that employers made reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities. -
Lawrence v. Texas
In Lawrence v. Texas the supreme court ruled (6–3) that a Texas state law criminalizing certain sexual conduct between two consenting adults of the same sex was unconstitutional. This expanded gay right’s and was one of the first cases to adress privacy potection on the basis of sex -
Obergefell vs. Hodges
This case gave same sex couples the right to marry. They based this decision on the due process clause and the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment. Prior to this case, same sex marriage was legal in 36 states despite not being federal law. It was a close ruling, with the court ruling in a 5-4 decision.
