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Declaration of Independence
This document declared that the thirteen colonies were no longer a part of Britain. People had fled from England because they believed the king had too much power. The people were seeking more freedom when they came to America. -
Seneca Falls Convention
The seneca falls convention was a womens' rights convention. It was the first such convention to take place, and women discussed way to improve their rights. It attracted nation wide recognition and became the first of many conventions -
13th Ammendment
The ammendment stated that no person in the United States could be a slave or be forced to perform and involntary labor. This gave african american slaves freedom to work where they chose and extended their rights -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment addresses equal rights for all citizens as an after fact from the end of slavery. The focus of the amendment is to stress that everyone has equal protection of the law, and it sets a plan to tax and move forward with the increased population. -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment gave African American men the right to vote. This was a huge advancment of rights because men still did not have much power in legal systems. -
Colorado is the first state to let women vote
Colorado was the first state to allow women to vote, but it took decades to achieve. Women went door-to-door trying to gain male support for the issue and eventually took it to court. The amendment passed with 55 percent of the vote -
Plessy Vs Ferguson
Plessy was jailed for sitting in a white train car even though there was a law stating that people of colored had to stay in seperate cars. The Supreme Court ruled with Ferguson and gave the idea of sperate but equal. This meant that as long as there are seperate and equal facilities then it is alright to segregate. -
NAACP is founded
The NAACP stands for national association for the advancement of colored people.The NAACP is an organization that helps minorities achieve equality in all aspects of life. The organization helps with voting rights, education, and social programs. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment allowed women to vote. This movement had been around for many years and was finally ratified in 1920. This amendment furthered the women's right movement. -
Executive Order 10450
Dwight Eisenhower issued the executive order because government officals had been investigating people who were viewed as security risks. Eisenhower believed that it was wrong to search people's history unless they posed mojor threat. This order gave workers less freedom to search for information on people. -
Brown vs Board of Education
In the Brown vs Board of Education case, Brown was unable to send his daughter to a white school even though it was close to their home. The Supreme Court ruled that the previous Plessy vs Ferguson case was unconstitutional. Seperate facilities could never be fully equal. -
One, Inc vs Olesen
This was one of the major supreme court cases that declared rughts for homosexuality. There was a Magazine called ONE which supported and portraid people's sexuality. Olesen declared it was obsene, but the court disagree and allowed the magazine to continue. -
Illinois is the first state to repeal its sodomy laws
Sodomy laws began when the colonies were first formed. The citizens took laws right from the Bible and stated that no "unnatural sin" or obsene crime can be done. Illinois repealed this crime to give freedom for the people and to take biblical context out of their laws. -
24th Amendment
The 24th Amendmet elliminated any poll tax for voters. This allowed every American citizen the ability to vote. Some citizens believed that the poll tax made it difficult for low income individuals to vote. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
This act made specifications that furthered American Americans' right to vote in local and state polls. The 15th Amendment gave them the right to vote for president but not all political polls -
Stonewall Iron Riots
The stonewall riots were demonstartions made by gay individuals against poice officers who raided the Stonewall Inn. the protests sparked the creation of gay rights groups across the nation. Also, the members who started the riots continued to try to reconnect the people in New York. -
Title IX
This law stated that there should not be discrimination in education or school based activities. Equal funding would have to be given to men and women in college campuses. This allowed women to start more programs and sports teams. -
APA removes homosexuality as a mental disorder
In 1970 gay activists started to protest the APA's notion that homosexuality was a mental disorder. Citizens believe it was a person choice to choose their sexuality. The board voted 13 to 2 to remove homosexulity from their listings. -
Don't Ask Don't Tell
The Don't Ask Don't Tell policy states that any person of any sex may join the armed forces, but no person could disclose their sexuality or ask another person about it. The armed forces claimed this would end discrimination about sexuality. -
Defense of Marriage Act
Bill Clinton passed the act which stated that same sex couples will get equal protection under the law. This allowed say sex couples to get benefits with insurance and fixed the lagality issue with couples. -
Massachusetts legalizes gay marriage
Massachusetts was the first state to legalize gay marriage as a result of the Goodridge vs Department of Public Health. The court believed that it was unconstitutional to oppose any type of marriage. -
Don't Ask Don't Tell is repealed
The Don't Ask Don't Tell policy stated that a homosexual person could not display their sexuality and others could not question a person's sexuality. The act was repealed because servicemen claimed that theu had the right to display their sexuality and it did not present a harm to the military. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
This act was a huge improvemnt to rights of the people. It stated that no one could discriminate based on color, religion, race, sex or nationality. This gave all minorities more rights along with women.
