Civil Rights Chapter 5

Slavery Before the Civil War Slave trade banned in 1808. South remains dependent on slave labor. 1820 Missouri Compromise line at 36 degrees latitude. Development of American Anti-Slavery Society in 1833. Women meet at Seneca Falls in 1848. Publication of Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852. Dred Scott decision in 1857 condones slavery.

The Aftermath of the Civil War Thirteenth Amendment abolishes slavery. South uses Black Codes to restrict rights. Fourteenth Amendment gives equal protection. Fourteenth Amendment also grants due process of law. Fifteenth Amendment gives blacks right to vote. Women are still excluded from suffrage.

Civil Rights after Reconstruction Southern defiance leads to 1875 Civil Rights Act. Courts still uphold discriminatory Jim Crow laws. Supreme Court agrees in Civil Rights Cases (1883). South also uses poll taxes to block black voters. Grandfather clauses added to allow poor whites to vote.

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Black Equality, 1890-1954 Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) upholds segregation. NAACP founded in 1909. Full legal attack on segregation begins in 1930s. NAACP LDF uses test case litigation to win rights. Gradual success in law schools and colleges. Brown v. Board of Education (1954). Importance of the equal protection clause.

Women’s Equality, 1890-1954 Women first work for wage laws and prohibition. National Consumers’ League plays key role. Later, the suffrage movement is the central focus. Led by National American Woman Suffrage Association. Achieve success with the Nineteenth Amendment.

The Civil Rights Movement Segregated schools must be dismantled. Some states try to resist; Arkansas as example. Rosa Parks challenges segregated busses. Formation of SCLC (rallies) and SNCC (sit-ins). Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream Speech.”

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 Outlaws segregation in public facilities. Bans discrimination in employment, education, voting. Provides for federal intervention. Creates Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Applies to race, color, religion, origin, and sex. Attempt to eliminate de jure discrimination. Could do little about de facto discrimination.

Women’s Rights Movement Formation of National Organization for Women. Publication of The Feminine Mystique. ACLU’s efforts to litigate for equal rights. Congress adopts Equal Rights Amendment. Amendment never ratified. Now known as Women’s Equality Amendment.

Equal Protection Clause Part of Fourteenth Amendment. Three different standards of review. Most laws subject to rational basis test. Intermediate standard applied to gender. Suspect classifications subject to strict scrutiny. Level of scrutiny is crucial to constitutionality of laws.

Table 6.1- Standards of Review  Back

Statutory Remedies Equal Pay Act of 1963. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title IX of Education Amendments of 1972.

Hispanic Americans Largest and fastest growing group in the U.S. High levels of activism and rallies begin in 1960s. United Farm Workers, National Council of La Raza. Use of litigation by LULAC and MALDEF. Voting, education, and immigration are major issues.

American Indians Unique status under U.S. law. History of isolation and then assimilation. Native American Rights Fund handles litigation. Major issues are hunting, fishing, and land rights. Also have had struggles about religious freedom. Growth of Indian casinos.

Asian Pacific Americans Difficulty finding Pan-Asian identity. History of restrictions on immigration and employment. Internment of Japanese Americans in World War II. Korematsu v. U.S. (1944). Increasing mobilization and efforts to elect leaders.

Table 6.2- Asian Pacific Americans  Back

Gays and Lesbians Major gains have been made in recent years. Lambda Legal, Lesbian Rights Project, GLAD. “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” considered failure. Lawrence v. Texas (2003). Success in states with gay marriage.

Americans with Disabilities 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act. Requires employers to accommodate the disabled. Tennessee v. Lane (2004) binds states to law. American Association of People with Disabilities. Often work with right to life groups.

Affirmative Action Gives special advantages to disadvantaged groups. Bakke decision lays groundwork for 1980s battle. Supreme Court plays major role. 2003 Grutter and Gratz decisions. Quotas not acceptable, some preference is okay.

Figure 6.1- Opinion on Affirmative Action  Back

Workplace Discrimination Equal pay suits at Wal-Mart. Ledbetter decision sets time limit for pay equity suits. Concern about hiring illegal immigrants. Violations of immigrants’ rights after 9/11.