Civil Rights
Unit 6
14th Amendment
Section 1.
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Clauses:
- Due Process- originally stated in the 5th amendment, must be applied equally under the 14th Amendment; enforced by the Civil Rights Act 1964
- Equal Protection- enforced by the Civil Rights Act 1964
Rights vs Liberties
Liberties → what the gov cannot do
Rights → what the gov must do (protect)
African-American Rights
Civil War Era:
- Dred Scott: slaves were not citizens
- Emancipation Proclamation
- 13th Amendment: ends slavery
- 14th Amendment: due process, equal protection
- 15th Amendment: male voting rights
Early Limitations:
- Black Codes in South
- Compromise of 1877
- Jim Crow laws
- Civil Rights Cases of 1883 → 14th only applied to states “official acts” not individuals
- Plessy v Ferguson → separate but equal
- “White Primary” upheld until 1944 (Smith v Allwright)
- Grandfather Clause
- Poll Taxes
- Literacy tests
Brown v Board of Education of Topeka
Brown v Board of Education → Separate but equal is inherently unequal
- initially ineffective, therefore: Brown II → “with all deliberate speed”
Civil Rights Legislation
Outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender and national origin
Outlawed arbitrary discrimination in voter registration
Barred discrimination in public accommodations
Authorized federal gov to sue to desegregate public schools and facilities
Expanded the power of the Civil Rights Commission and extended its life
Provided for the withholding of federal funds from programs administered in a discriminatory manner
Established the right to equality of opportunity in employment (Title VII and the Equal Employment Opp. Commission)
Voting Rights Act
Outlawed discriminatory voter registration
Authorized federal registration or voters and federally administered voting procedures in any political subdivision or state that discriminated electorally
IMPACT:
Federal voter registration drives
Race riots
Civil Rights Act of 1968
9 days after King’s assassination
Forbid discrimination in housing (focus on mortgage lending)
Immigration
Herdandez v Texas → M.As have equal protection under 14th (1954)
Cesar Chavez and Dolares Huerta
Affirmative Action
“Policies attempt to level the playing field by giving special preferences in educational admissions and employment decisions to groups that have been discriminated against in the past “
All govs
Anyone who worked with the gov
Received federal funds
Ordered by gov or EEOC
Bakke Case
UC Davis Medical school
Reserved 16 spots for educational “disadvantaged” students (race as factor)
Reverse discrimination
1978, SCOTUS: quota systems are NOT allowed but R/E can be a factor in acceptance
SCOTUS Rulings:
Diversity is a legitimate goal
strict judicial scrutiny --> Must be narrow and focused, serve a 'compelling' gov interest
Grutter v Bollinger (2003) → race can be used to achieve racial diversity
Fisher v UT Austin → Top 10% automatically and race in other applicants allowed
UT lost bc they did not use “strict judicial scrutiny” → the policy did not serve a narrow, compelling gov interest
- A-Action is not legal in Cali, Washington, and Michigan
Women's Rights
Equal Rights Amendment
Introduced 1923
Approved and sent to states 1972
7 year limit → 1977 only 35 (of 38) states
Three State Strategy → legally viable today?
Legislature and Courts
Pregnancy Discrimination Act 1964
Title IX 1972
“Risk Rule” in the military 1994 → full integration by Jan 2016
Title VII of Civil Rights Act
Sexual Harassment (1998) → ruled that employers must take reasonable care to prevent; includes same-sex harassment
Equal Pay Act of 1963
War Labor Board in WWII ended
Amendment to Fair Labor Standards Act 1938
Equal pay for substantially equal work
Lilly Ledbetter Act (2009) → overturns SCOTUS 180 day rule
Paycheck Fairness Act (2014 SOTU)--> can’t retaliate against workers for discussing pay
Disabled
Rehabilitation Act (1973) → prohibits disc. In programs that receive federal funds
1978 → regulations for ramps and access to federal buildings
Education for All Handicapped Children Act (1975) → “appropriate” edu
ADA (1990) most significant
Americans with Disability Act (1990)
All public buildings and services be accessible to persons with disabilities
Employers must reasonably accommodate the needs of workers or potential workers with disabilities
Affordable Care Act → insurance cannot deny for preexisting conditions
Limitations
- Sutton v United Airlines → conditions that can be corrected with medication or a device are not a disability
LGBT
Boy Scouts of America case → as a private org. They could determine the reqs for being a Scout Leader
2009 (Matthew Shepard Act) → expands federal hate crime laws to include crimes motivated by a victim’s actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability
Lawrence v Texas → anti-sodomy laws violate the due process clause ofthe 14th
20 states today have laws protecting LGBT against discrimination
1993 → Clinton, “don't ask, don’t tell” policy
Repealed under Obama, Sept 2011
- 1993 & Hawaii → many states passed anti-SSM laws; Congress passed DOMA 1996
- Bans federal recognition of lesbian and gay couples and allows state govs to ignore SSM performed in other states
- 1999 & Vermont: ruled entitled to the same benefits
- 2000 (VT) → allowed SS Civil Unions to receive state benefits
- 2005 CT adopts
US v Windsor, 2003 → ruled Section 3 of DOMA unconstitutional
Treated a subset of marriages as unequal
Recognized in home state, recognized federally
Federal law changed after to provide benefits regardless of home state recognition of marriage
Does NOT overturn state laws against SSM
Landmark Cases Cheat Sheet Version
** Do note that most cases from Civil Liberties also, cite the 14th Amendment. The Due Process clause and Equal Protection clause are often the underlying issues of Civil Liberties cases (ie. liberties are not applied equally or someone was not provided due process due to some form of discrimination).
Civil Rights Case:
Dred Scott v Sanford (AA not citizens)Plessy v Ferguson (separate but equal)
Brown v Board (separate but equal is not legal)
Brown II
Baker v Carr (one person, one vote)
Herandez v Texas (equal protection of Mexican-Americans)
Bakke Case (no quotas, R/E can be used for admissions)
Grutter v Bollinger (2003) → race can be used to achieve racial diversityFisher v UT Austin →did not use “strict judicial scrutiny” → the policy did not serve a narrow, compelling gov interest
Sutton v United Airlines → conditions that can be corrected with medication or a device are not a disability
Boy Scouts of America case → as a private org. They could determine the reqs for being a Scout Leader
Lawrence v Texas → anti-sodomy laws violate the due process clause of the 14th
US v Windsor --> Section 3 of DOMA was unconstitutional