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Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott was the name of a man who had been a slave in Missouri. He moved to Illinois, a free state, and tried to sue Missouri. His argument was that he now resided in a free state which should make him a free man. The court decided against him on the grounds that any slave descendent wasn't an American citizen and therefore didn't have the grounds to sue. -
13th Amendment
The 13th amendment served as the official country wide abolishment of slavery/involuntary labor, except in the case of punishment. It was the first of the three reconstruction amendments following directly after the civil war. After the Emancipation Proclamation millions of slaves were temporarily free, but their postwar status was unknown. This amendment secured their freedom officially. -
14th Amendment
The 14th amendment is one of the most vital amendments as it directly addresses things like equal protection and citizenship rights. This amendment was also a civil war amendment, the second of three. The Supreme Court used the 14th amendment in their decisions for cases like Brown v. Board of education, Roe v. Wade, and Obergefell v. Hodges. This amendment is also where most people infer the right to privacy. -
15th Amendment
This amendment prohibits the government from denying someone access to vote on the basis of race, allowing former slaves and their children to vote for the first time. This amendment all sparked Jim Crow laws that attempted to stop black men from voting. A literacy test was often given that would deny the majority of black men from voting. There were things in place, though, like the grandfather clause that would ensure uneducated white people could still vote. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
The Plessy v. Ferguson case started because of the Separate Car Act which enforced the segregation of railway cars based on race. Homer Plessy, a biracial man, volunteered to sit in on a white train car. When he was arrested, he appealed and argued that the Separate Car Act violated the 13th and 14th amendment. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the act 7-1 and solidified the term "separate but equal". -
Jim Crow Era
The Jim Crow Era was an era following the passing of the 15th amendment. It tried to limit the rights the 15th amendment granted. The two defining features of the era is the disenfranchising of African Americans and the segregation of races in schools, work environments, and public places like restaurants, pools, and churches. -
19th Amendment
The 19th amendment was the amendment that guarantied suffrage to women. This amendment was the result of the decade-long fights of suffragettes in their push for voting-based representation. This amendment was first introduced in 1878 but received major pushback from the government. With the addition of the amendment it officially granted the vast majority of adult American citizens access to voting rights. -
Equal Rights Amendment
This amendment was an unratified amendment that focused on legitimizing the 19th Amendment. The proposed amendment also would solidify equality between men and women in matter of divorce, employment, property, etc. Though the amendment wasn't passed, with the rising popularity of the Me Too movement and the overturning of Roe v. Wade many have brought up the old amendment and suggested that it be ratified. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board was a supreme court case that consisted of a lot of individual cases from multiple states pushing back against segregation of schools based off race. In every case one or many African American students were denied enrollment in a school because of their race. The case argued that segregation of schools violated the equal protection clause. This case decided the former "separate but equal" statement was inherently unequal and overturned their decision on Plessy v. Ferguson. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 expanded on the 15th amendment, now stating that the government couldn't stop people from voting based on race, sex, religion, etc. This act also prohibited the segregation of schools, other public places, and employment. In general this act fought against all types of discrimination in the work place, school, and general public. This act was passed by Lyndon B. Johnson but was originally proposed by JFK before his assassination. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This act was essential to civil rights as it prohibited any discriminations based on race in voting. This explicitly was against the Jim Crow laws put in place to combat the 15th amendment. Even though the 15th amendment technically made it official, many see this act as the true first time African Americans were granted free access to voting. In the act is specifically outlines the banning of literacy tests. -
Reed v. Reed
In this case there was a couple who had an adopted son who died. The son's estate appointed his father, Cecil, to be the administer. This was due to an Idaho probate code that states, "males must be preferred over females". Sally, the mom, appealed. The court unanimously ruled in favor of Sally. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
A pre-med student continuously tried to get admitted to a med school in California and was denied multiple times. The med school had 16 spots out of the 100 reserved for "qualified minorities". The student had a better GPA and test scores than any of the minority students so he contended to the court. The court ruled in favor of Bakke 8-1 on the basis of racial discrimination. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
A police officer observed Michael Hardwick engaging in consensual homosexual sodomy, he was arrested under the charges of criminalized sodomy. Hardwick challenged the law and its constitutionality. The court ruled 5-4 in favor of the police officer. This continued the outlaw of homosexuality. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act, passed in 1990 by president Bush, is a civil rights act that prohibits the discrimination of Americans with disabilities. The act also sets strict provisions for public places to ensure that they are accessible to a set number of disabilities like mobility impairment, deafness, and blindness. The act was later amended in 2009 under President Bush to overturn two controversial Supreme Court cases. -
Motor Voter Act
This act required a simplified version of voter registration to be provided if a person qualified. It also applies for drivers license renewals, public assistance, and the postal service. The purpose of the act was to make voting more accessible, specifically for those with special needs or disabilities. -
Affirmative Action
Affirmative action is a set of guidelines that are "intended to end and correct the effects of a specific form of discrimination". The programs created by it are focused mainly on education and employment. They aim to serve mainly racial minorities and women. Some states like California, Michigan, and Florida ban affirmative action or any other kind of selective employment. -
Lawrence v. Texas
Police, while investigating a reported weapons disturbance, walked in on John Lawrence and another adult men engaging in consensual sex. Both men were arrested as a Texas statute forbid two members of the same sex engaging in intercourse. Lawrence argued that the statute violated the Due Process Clause. The court voted in a 6-3 decision in favor of Lawrence. -
Obergefell v. Hodges
A group of gay couples from multiple states went to court to challenge the constitutionality of their states bans on same-sex marriage. They argued it violated both the equal protection clause and the due process clause. The court ruled with a 5-4 decision in favor of Obergefell, legalizing gay marriage.