Transcript Lecture 15 - Galena Park ISD Moodle

Great Lecture
Civil Rights
Civil Rights – 14th Amendment
Equal Protection Clause
No state shall…deny to any
person the equal protection
of the laws.
Supreme Court interpretations
of the equal protection clause
• Reasonable Basis: Government has
power to make reasonable
classifications between person & groups
• Strict Scrutiny – classification by race
and ethnic background are inherently
suspect
• Intermediate Scrutiny: government must
show that the challenged classification
serves an important state interest
The Legacy: Slavery, Civil
War, and Reconstruction
• Three Kinds of Policies
– Racial Segregation (Plessy v. Ferguson –
“separate but equal”)
– Exclusion from the Political Process
– Denial of Public Services
The Counter Attack
• Early attempts to undermine racial
segregation took the form of lawsuits
using the Fourteenth and Fifteenth
amendments. Led by NAACP.
• These resulted in the Supreme Court’s
decision in Brown v. Board of Education
in 1954.
Putting Brown to Work
• Local hostility to Brown prevented
significant enforcement for about a
decade
• Only with the passage of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 and other legislation
was significant process made in
implementing Brown
The continuing effects of
Brown
• Until the early 1970's, Brown was used
to attack school segregation in the
South (de jure – state laws and
regulations)
• Since then, school districts in northern,
midwestern, and western states have
been the target. (de facto – housing
patterns)
Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Provisions
– Ended segregation in public
accommodations, transportation, etc.
– Prohibited job discrimination on basis of
race, color, national origin, religion, or
Gender
– Created Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC)
• Upheld by SC under power of Congress
to regulate interstate commerce.
Civil Disobedience
• Sit-ins
• Boycotts
• MLK – non violent disobedience
Affirmative Action
• Affirmative action- positive discrimination in
favor of disadvantaged groups to overcome
the residual effects of past discrimination.
• Bakke v. California was the first major
affirmative action case decided by the
Supreme Court – reverse discrimination
• Court ruled strict quotas unconstitutional but
race can be one criterion.
• 2003 – two University of Michigan cases
supported the constitutionality of affirmative
action to promote diversity.
Voting Rights
15th Amendment 1870
• §1. The right of citizens of the United
States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any
State on account of race, color, or
previous condition of servitude.
• §2. The Congress shall have power to
enforce this article by
appropriate
legislation.
The Voting Rights Act
• The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is the
most important voting legislation ever
enacted by Congress
• It has ended much voter discrimination
based on race
The 1982 Amendment
• Congress extended the Voting Rights
Act for 25 more years in 1982.
• Congress also changed the law to make
unlawful existing practices in any part of
the country that have a racially
discriminatory effect.
Asians
• Previously faced immigration
restrictions (Chinese Exclusion Act in
1882 and Gentlemen’s Agreement in
1907)
• Korematsu v. United States (1944) –
upheld WWII relocation of JapaneseAmericans.
• Immigration policies since the 1960s
favor highly educated and professional
qualifications have benefitted many
Latino Rights
• Fastest growing minority group
• Major issues:
– English as a Second Language (ESL)
versus Bilingual Education
– Immigration Policy
The Legacy of Women
• Until recently, the legal status of women
in the United States was one of
substantial inequality.
• Seneca Falls Convention: birth of
women’s suffrage movement.
• The nineteenth Amendment (1920)
granted women the right to vote.
– Although many had the right to vote in all
elections via state action.
Gender to the Forefront
• Attacks on racial discrimination during
the 1950's helped to turn attention to
laws that penalized women because
they were women
• Leading the fight for sexual equality has
been the National Organization for
Women (1966)
The Equal Rights Amendment
• First introduced in Congress in 1923 the
Equal Rights Amendment was proposed by
Congress to the states in 1972.
• “equality of rights under the law shall not be
denied or abridged by the United States or by
any state on account of sex.”
• The campaign for ratification failed in 1982 by
3 states.
Civil Rights Legislation for
Women
• Equal Pay Act (1963) – bans wage
discrimination
• Civil Rights Act of 1964 – also banned
job discrimination on basis of gender.
• Title IX of Higher Education Act – bans
discrimination based on sex by schools
receiving federal aid. Key role in
development of women’s sports.
Right to Privacy & Abortion
Rights
• Griswold v Connecticut (1965) – SC
struck a law banning use of
contraceptives as a violation of the
implied right of privacy.
• Roe v. Wade (1973) – right to obtain an
abortion protected by the right to
privacy.
Challenges to Roe
• Hyde Amendment – bans use of federal
funds in abortion
• Since the 1980s, SC has ruled that a
state may place reasonable restrictions
on abortion but has refused to overturn
Roe.
Seniors
• Age Discrimination Act (1963) – bans
age discrimination in employment.
(Yeah!)
• AARP – represents over 30 million older
Americans & lobbies for the rights of
older Americans in health, housing,
taxes and transportation.
Disabled Americans
• The Education for all Handicapped
Children Act of 1975 – gave all children
the right to a free public education
• Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) –
bans discrimination in employment,
transportation, public accommodations,
etc. against persons with physical or
mental disabilities.
Gay Issues
• SC has struck down sodomy laws
• Clinton’s DADT policy has recently been lifted
to allow gays to openly serve in the military.
• SC has ruled that Boy Scouts can bar gay
scout leaders
• 2003 – Massachusetts legalized gay
marriages