A.P. Govt. Ch. 16, “Equality and Civil Rights”

-Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857): Supreme Court ruled that slaves were not citizens—and could not sue in court; this held true until the Civil War (1861-65)-universities use racial preferences to assure a diverse student population; while promoting equality this may infringe on freedom

Two Conceptions of equality• Americans support equality of opportunity—everyone

starts off the same, more than equality of outcome—everyone gets the same result or benefits

• in polls—38 to 64 percent of Ams. support Affirmative Action programs

• quota policies: set aside positions for some previously discriminated groups; this takes into consideration characteristics instead of abilities

• Civil rights in the U.S.: search for economic and social equality; began with African-Ams.—but also has been for women, Native Ams., Latinos, people with disabilities, immigrants, and homosexuals

The Civil War Amendments

• 13th Amendment (1865): outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude (except for punishment for a crime)

• 14th Amendment (1868): freed slaves were citizens (like those born or naturalized); prevents states from taking away citizens’ rights and depriving them of “life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”; and states cannot deny anyone the equal protection of the laws

• 15th Amendment (1870): the right to vote cannot be “abridged” by the U.S. or states “on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude”

African-Am. Rights from 1865 to 1950

• U.S. Congress —attempted to protect African-Am. rights including: sue and give evidence in court; make and enforce contracts; control property; have equal access to public accommodations (parks, theaters, etc.)

• southern states took away those rights—and the Supreme Court said that it could not control private and state actions that took away the rights (including the right to vote—with poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clause)

• Jim Crow: legal separation (or segregation) of races in the South, including schools, bathrooms, water fountains, hospitals, cemeteries, and parks

African-Am. Rights from 1865 to 1950 (cont.)

• Plessy v. Ferguson ruling (1896): Homer Plessy—an African-Am. Man—was forced to sit in a separate railroad car, so he sued based on the 14th Amendment; the Supreme Court ruled that there were “separate but equal” facilities for both races—so that would be allowed; the problem was that black accommodations—and schools—were inferior to white ones

• the Supreme Court helped assure that blacks would not be able to overcome Jim Crow and laws on discrimination

The Dismantling of School Segregation

• NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People): had the goal of ending racial discrimination and segregation; decided to use the courts to do so

• 1938: SC said that the U. of Missouri had to admit Lloyd Gaines (an African-Am.) to its law school

• Sweatt v. Painter (1950): SC required the U. of Texas to fully admit Sweatt—who was black—to its law school

• 1947-48: Pres. Truman established a Committee on Civil Rights and desegregated the armed forces

The Dismantling of School Segregation (cont.)

• Brown v. Bd. of Education of Topeka (1954): Thurgood Marshall represented the NAACP and Linda Brown—an African-Am. Girl who wanted to attend an all-white elementary school; Chief Justice Earl Warren gave the unanimous ruling of the court—that “separate but equal” was wrong—since the facilities for whites and blacks were unequal; this violated the 14th Amend.’s equal protection clause also

• Brown v. Bd. Of Ed. II (1955): SC ruled that desegregation must occur “with all deliberate speed”—and the lower courts would supervise this; some states complied, others ignored it, and some protested

• SC: approved of remedies like busing, racial quotas, and pairing school zones to end segregation (Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Schools—busing approved); later the Court said busing should not be used

The Civil Rights Movement• Black churches—the “crucible” of the movement• Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: led the Montgomery Bus

Boycott in 1955-56 to end segregation on buses• Dr. King helped organize the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership

Conference)—which was committed to nonviolent action; they used sit-ins to protest discrimination in restaurants; March on Washington (August, 1963)—where Dr. King gave his “I Have a Dream” speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial and 250,000 people; pushed the government to act

• Civil Rights Act of 1964: banned discrimination in public places; right to equality in employment opportunities; strengthened voting rights legislation; created the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) to investigate job discrimination; federal funds would be withheld from states who failed to comply with the law

The Civil Rights Movement (cont.)• Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson—helped get laws and amendments

passed for civil rights—and try to end poverty• 24th Amendment (1964): banned poll taxes in primary and

general elections for national office• Economic Opportunity Act (1964): education and training to help

combat poverty• Voting Rights Act of 1965: attorney general cand send voter

registration supervisors to areas where minorities have low voter registration

• Fair Housing Act (1968): banned discrimination in the rental and sale of most housing

• Supreme Court: has declared some forms of quotas as unconstitutional

Civil Rights for Other Minorities• Native Ams.: 1700s and 1800s--moved to reservations and denied political and

social rights; children sent to boarding schools and prohibited from speaking native languages; 1924: granted citizenship rights; 1946: Congress established a commission to compensate Native groups who had land taken from them; many Natives protested in the 1960s and 70s; today: Native tribes can establish casinos on their land without paying taxes

• Immigrant groups (especially Latinos): before 1965—most laws discriminated against immigrants (quota system—benefitting those from Northern and Western Europe, and against groups from other areas of the world); goals included reuniting families, and bringing in immigrants with skills and education; many illegal immigrants continued to come; so laws have been passed to prevent those here illegally from obtaining health care or driver’s licenses; also, some places like Arizona and Alabama require that people carry proper ID; many faced poverty and discrimination; Cesar Chavez: led a strike of the UFW (United Farm Workers) against growers in California; many Latinos are not registered voters—or vote—but more have become elected to office

Civil Rights for Other Minorities (cont.)

• 1990 ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) gained protection as a minority; guarantees access to employment, transportation, public accommodations, and communication services; used the EEOC to file complaints against employers for discrimination; defined disability as: “a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities”; 2008—Congress revised the ADA, making it easier to prove discrimination, and expanded the number of conditions requiring protection

• Homosexual Americans: Stonewall Riot (1969)—in NYC began the gay rights movement (as police fought with protestors); political interest groups have formed (National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Human Rights Campaign); more have been elected to Congress, and federal govt. policies towards homosexuals under Pres. Obama have been more accepting (in addition to state laws supporting same-sex marriage—such as Massachusetts and Illinois); Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000): Supreme Court said that the Boy Scouts could exclude a scout leader who was openly gay

Gender and Equal Rights:the Women’s Movement

• Laws before the 1970s: upheld the traditional roles of men and women in society; so women could not vote, have the same jobs and careers as men, and work the same number of hours

• Use of the 14th Amendment—to push for equal protection as men• 19th Amendment (1920): gave women the right to vote—after suffragettes

like Susan B. Anthony pushed for it• World War I and II: many women worked outside the home—especially in

factories—showing that they could perform the same jobs as men• Equal Pay Act (1963): when doing similar work, women and men should

be paid the same• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964): prohibited employment

discrimination based on gender• Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972: prohibits sex

discrimination in federally aided education programs; as a result there are more women’s sports in colleges and universities

Gender and Equal Rights:the Women’s Movement (cont.)

• Revenue Act (1972): provided tax credits for child-care expenses—thus allowing women (and men) who have children to work

• Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (2009): allows women more time to file a complaint about pay discrimination

• Supreme Court: has said that gender-based distinctions in laws are only allowed if they serve some important govt. purpose; but not for serving on juries

• United States v. Virginia (1996): Supreme Court said that women should be allowed to enroll at the Virginia Military Institute just like men

• ERA (Equal Rights Amendment): passed by Congress in 1972; it was 3 states short of adoption by 1977—so Congress extended the deadline; but by 1982 it failed to be ratified

• NOW (National Organization for Women)—has encouraged women to participate in politics, and laws benefitting women

Affirmative Action• Pres. Lyndon Johnson: his vision of a Great Society led to

affirmative action programs to expand opportunities for women, minorities, and people with disabilities—and overcome past discrimination against them

• AA sometimes involves public and private programs, policies, procedures, preferential treatment, and quotas in job training, employment, and the awarding of government contracts

• For AA: it gives educational and job opportunities that were previously denied—so is fair to those who faced discrimination in the past

• Against AA: it is reverse discrimination—and punishes quality candidates for schools and jobs who did not commit the discrimination, so it infringes on their freedom

Affirmative Action (cont.)• Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1977): SC said that Allan

Bakke—a white man who applied to medical school but was denied, even though he was most qualified—should be allowed to go to school there, and universities could not use race as the sole basis of admitting someone

• Gratz v. Bollinger (2003): SC said the University of Michigan’s preferential treatment based on race for undergraduate admissions was not allowed

• Grutter v. Bollinger: SC said the U. of Michigan Law School’s admission policy that gave preference to minority applicants with lower GPAs and standardized test scores could be allowed—since race was only one factor of many for admission

• Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 (2007): SC said that voluntary school integration plans based on race were not allowed according to the 14th Amendment

Affirmative Action (cont.)

• Blacks tend to favor AA more than whites• A majority of Ams. reject race or gender preferences for

awarding contracts, employment decisions, and college admissions

• Yet both Democrats and Republicans have allowed preference policies to survive—because the programs encourage unprotected groups to strive for inclusion

• AA programs were originally to be temporary—to give minorities a jump start in ending the education and wealth gap with whites (and males)