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Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott, a former slave from Missouri, resided in Illinois which was a free state. He then soon returned to Missouri and filed a suit in court for his freedom. He claimed that since he was resident in a free territory, it made him a free man. After losing, Scott's master brought him into a new suit, saying that no "negro" or slave descendent of slaves could be a citizen. The court agreed and ruled that slaves were property to their owner. -
13th Amendment
This amendment bans slavery in the United States and all of its territories. It had a rocky journey to the Constitution. It was passed by the Senate in April 1864, but was not passed by the House immediately due to the chaos of the Civil War. Eventually, the House passed this proposal in January 1865. It became an official amendment on December 6th when it was finally ratified by Georgia. -
14th amendment
This amendment grants "equal protection of the law" to every citizen of the United States - meaning everyone born or naturalized into the US, regardless of race, was a citizen. It also protected the "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness" of every citizen and said they could not be infringed upon without the due process of law. This holds every level of government, including the States themselves, accountable to enforce this new law. -
White Primaries
White primaries were a tactic used by states to prevent people of color from voting during the Reconstruction era. This was used to maintain Democratic power in the South. Many of these primaries were used similarly to, or in conjunction with poll taxes and literacy tests. They were finally eliminated due to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 -
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White Primaries
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15th amendment
This amendment granted the right to vote to anyone of any race, regardless of whether or not they were a slave before the Civil War or had slave lineage. Still, even though this amendment was very clear on extend the vote to all men regardless of race, that didn't stop certain states from trying to prevent black men from voting through means like white primaries and poll taxes. -
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Poll taxes
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Poll taxes
These taxes were other tactics for southern states to deny the rights of many black families. They were a tax on voting, so you had to pay them to vote. This made it extremely hard ofr most black men and women to vote and also left behind poor white families. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
In Plessy v. Ferguson, Homer Aldoph Plessy, a 7/8 caucasian man refused to move from where he was sitting on a train (the "white's only" section), and he was arrested. The court ruled 7-1 in favor of Ferguson, stating that the fourteenth amendment was not being violated in this instance because it fulfilled the "separate but equal" doctrine. The date used for this case was the decision date. -
19th amendment
This amendment grants anyone the right to vote regardless of sex. This amendment was controversial and closely tied to Women's Rights and Suffragettes movements. This bill passed by 1 vote in Tennessee, making it the final state needed to ratify this law. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Black children were not allowed admission to schooled attended by white children, solely on the basis of race. This was taken to court, and it was decided that though schools were "objectively" equal, the segregation of schools would be seen as a sign of inferiority. The idea of "separate but equal" was rejected and viewed as unequal in the context of education. -
24th amendment
This amendment stated nobody shall be denied the right to vote by their inability to pay a poll tax or other similar taxes. This was created to strike down the voting restrictions that prevented African Americans from voting, even though a previous amendment granted them this right. Poll taxes, which are specifically named in this amendment, were a fee required to vote for an election and were a popular exclusionary tactic in the South. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This act removed all racial segregation in public domain, as in schools and bus stations and the workplace or anywhere that served the general public. This act also established the right of citizens to vote no matter gender, race or religion. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This act prohibited the denial of voting rights based on literacy tests. This made it so anyone could vote no matter their education. Before this law, some cities were making laws that made everyone take literacy tests because they knew that black men and women had not had the opportunity to gain the knowledge to pass the test, therefore finding a way around the laws and amendments made about equal voting rights. -
Reed v. Reed
Idaho Probate Code stated that males were to be favored over females in respect to appointing administrators of estates. Cecil and Sally Reed, separated, sought control over their son's estate after he had died, however, Cecil was granted the estate according to the probate code. Sally challenged this in court, and it was unanimously decide that the unequal treatment of males and females in this respect was unconstitutional. -
Equal Rights Amendment
This affirmed the equality of rights for all citizens regardless of gender. The ERA was written in 1923 by Alice Paul, who was a suffragist leader and founded the National Women's Party. The ERA was introduced to congress between 1923 and 1972. And the US Senate passed and sent to the states for ratification on March 22 1972. -
Regents of the University of California v Bakke
Bakke was a 35 year old white man trying to get admitted into the University of California. He had been declined twice previously. The university would leave open 16 out of 100 spots for minority students. Bakke was not admitted even though his scores were higher than the minority students admitted. He stated that he was excluded solely because of race. The Court was a split vote, but majority resided with Bakke, with the majority stating that this was a violation of the 14th amendment. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
Michael Hardwick was observed by a Georgia police officer "engaging in the act of consensual homosexual sodomy" in Hardwick's bedroom home. He was charged with violating a Georgia statute that said this was wrong, and Hardwick challenged the constitutionality of this. The court was divided, but majority ruled against Hardwick, finding that the there was no constitutional protection for sodomy. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
This prohibits discrimination and makes sure that those with disabilities have equal opportunity for employment, government services, public accommodations, commercial facilities and transportation -
Affirmative Action
Favoring members of a disadvantaged group who are perceived to suffer from discrimination. Also defined as aiding those who have been historically excluded from American society. -
Lawrence v. Texas
Texas police were responding to a reported weapons disturbance and walked into Lawrence's home and found him and Garner engaging in a consensual homosexual act. They were both arrested, and courts initially ruled that this was legal. The courts later ruled in favor of Lawrence and Garner, stating that the Texan statue was unconstitutional. -
Obergefell v. Hodges
Obergefell v Hodges was one of the many same sex marriage cases being decided at the time. All but one of the district courts agreed that a same sex marriage ban was unconstitutional so the issue was sent to the Supreme Court. It was decided on the basis of the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment that same sex marriage was constitutional and that states must be required to issue marriage certificates to gay couples.
