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Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson was an impactful landmark in 1896, the Supreme Court decided to upheld racial segregation under the "separate but equal" doctrine. The case was birthed by a train passenger Homer Plessy who refused to sit in a car for black. This fight had legal precedent and although it did not end in Plessy's favor it caused constitutional challenges to segregation all over America that eventually helped overturn racism. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Oliver Brown was a father who filed a law suit against the Board of Education in Kansas, after his daughter Linda Brown was denied access to Topeka's elementary schools that only allowed whites. His argument was that black children were not treated equally, violating the 14th amendment. The case went to the Supreme Court along with 4 other related cases that were combined in one. brown won his case and later it impacted so much that it lead to the civil rights movement and boycotting. -
Mapp v. Ohio
Police forcefully entered Dollree Mapp's house with no search warrant, they believed Mapp was keeping a suspected bomber. Even though they found strange pictures they did not find a suspect. She was convicted nonetheless but argued that her 4th Amendment was violated because no search warrant was issued. Her case won and her charges were dropped since they did not have a search warrant or concrete evidence against her. -
New York Times v. Sullivan
The NYT published an advertisement funded by civil rights activists that criticized the police for how they treated protestors. some statements were false so police commissioner Sullivan argued that his career was destroyed based on false accusations. The supreme Court ruled in favor of the newspaper. The only way it could go in favor of Sullivan was if their was proof that NYT wrote that with malice. -
Miranda v. Arizona
A Mexican Immigrant was found and arrested by police for being accused by a women of kidnapping and rape. He later confessed but was never informed of his Fifth or Sixth Amendment right by the police. It later went to court and Miranda won and was let off his conviction since there was many similar cases shown that police fail to inform people of their rights in the US. This decision is known as the Miranda Warning, making sure everyone is aware of their rights from now on. -
Tinker v. Des Moines
Students in Iowa organized a protest against the Vietnam War and organized to wear black armbands. The principal found out and threatened suspension to anyone who wore the armbands, the students did not listen and still wore them. The parents fought that it violated their first amendment and the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the students. The arm band did not disrupt their learning as it was merely a silent protest so they deserved to have their rights protected. -
Title IX
Title IX is a civil rights law that protects everyone from discrimination based on your sex in any education or activity programs that receive financial assistance. Female athletes had fewer opportunities and did not get treated equally or were even accepted into programs simply based on their sex. Title IX was meant to correct this issue and because of this graduation rates have increased for women and they even pursue higher education with completion of college degrees. -
Education for All Handicapped Children Act
Eight year old Tommy Smith had cerebral palsy and the Rhode Island district placed him in a program for special needs in a hospital that was understaffed and underfunded. Tommy's parents fought, taking it to the Supreme Court where they ruled in their favor. This law has assured that special ed services are available, guarantees that decisions about services needed for students with disabilities are fair an also provides federal funds to help states educate special needs children. -
Plyer v. Doe
in 1975 the Texas Legislation reviewed their education laws that denied enrollment in their public schools to any children that were immigrants. They fought for them to allow children to have the right to an education without the fear of having their documents seared and have them deported. After review they found that most of the students in Texas public schools were immigrants and they didn't have any intention to leave thousands of kids without an education so they ruled in favor of Plyer. -
New Jersey v. T.L.O
A new Jersey high school teacher found 2 girls smoking in the bathroom, one girl confessed, the other denied. She later had to confess due to evidence being found. She was charged and fought that her 4th Amendment was violated but the Supreme Court sided with the school. They ruled that schools don't need a search warrant or reason before conducting a search warrant because students have limited privacy in school. This does cause students to have less privacy but in the end more security. -
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
Students in Hazelwood High School made a funded school newspaper about teen pregnancy and divorce. The principal deleted those stories because he thought it was inappropriate to publicize so the students fought back saying that was a violation of their right. The Supreme Court sided with the school. The First Amendment can be limited in a public school setting only under the school roof setting. This causes many students to have limited conversations and awareness in schools about taboo topics. -
Texas v. Johnson
A convention was being held in Texas when Gregory Lee Johnson and his group of activists protests throughout the streets. When they got to city hall they lit an American flag on fire. He was later arrested and taken to trial. Johnson argued that it was his right protected by the 1st amendment, The Texas court agreed with him and when it went to the Supreme Court they did as well. This has protected many from expressing their opinions in any way they feel is needed.
