Culture Wars and the Supreme Court
Court Cases
Plessy v. Ferguson
Flessy v Ferguson was a case in 1896 that decided on the issue of the Constitutionality of segregation. This "separate but equal" clause was ruled constitutional under the "Equal Protection Clause." This was later over ruled by Brown v. BOE in 1954.
Brown v. BOE
Brown vs Board of Education was a landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional. Oliver L. Brown was one of the parents involved in the committee of Brown vs BOE. His daughter, Linda Brown, was one of the many African American children who attended a segregated school system. This court case overturned Plessy v. Ferguson making segregation illegal.
Brown v. BOE 2
Brown vs Board of Education II took place in 1954 after the first one failed to really do anything. After the first court case, the Supreme Court had unanimously voted in favor of Brown. However, the Court had said that the issue would be handled "with all deliberate speed" which really means "when we feel like getting around to it." The second court case addressed the failure for the Supreme Court to really take action on the matter and caused the justices to put an actual date on it.
Roe v Wade
In 1973, the Roe vs Wade court case occurred. This was a big one that decided whether or not abortion was legal or illegal. This decided whether it was a women's right to abort a possible future child. This was a strongly debated issue in the United States and it still is today. On January 22, 1973 the Supreme Court decided 7-2 that the 14th Amendment extended to a woman's right to have an abortion.
Next Justices to Retire
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Ruth Ginsburg is a Democrat member of the Supreme Court. She is currently 81 years old and has served on the court for 21 years. She is a Liberal justice and was appointed by Bill Clinton in 1993. It is likely that she will retire soon because of her age.
Stephen Breyer
Stephen Breyer is a Democrat member of the Supreme Court. He is currently 76 years old and has served on the court for 20 years. He is also a Liberal justice and was appointed by Bill Clinton in 1994. He may also retire soon because of his age.
What Vacancies Means
What Happens When Two People Retire?
If these two members of the Supreme Court do retire, then there will be two seats up for grab and this could possibly change how the court votes on cases. Since both of the members leaving are liberal democrats, it is likely that they would retire while Obama is still president because they would want him to be able to get another like minded person in the Supreme Court. However, if they both retire after he leaves office or even once the republicans take control of the Senate and the House, then it is more likely that the seats will be taken by two more conservative people.
Synopsis
The Culture War
The Culture Wars in the United States are a big deal. There are currently many parties involved in trying to influence the lives of millions. Currently, there is a bigger push for republican conservatives to be in the government as seen by the midterm elections. This is the result of people with more conservative and most likely Christian views voting more. This could also be a result of people just not liking the democrat party anymore but i'm not so sure about that. With more conservatives in power things in this nation are most likely going to change to reflect that of the conservation republicans with mostly Christian views.