Civil Rights Introduction and Historical Context

What Are “Civil Rights”? Generally, notion of equal treatment – By government: Civil Rights Amendments to the U.S. Constitution – By corporations and private individuals: civil rights statutes (such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act)

Slavery and Abolition Slave labor formed foundation of Southern agricultural economy “Mudsill” defense of slavery Abolition movement – Quakers – Women’s rights advocates

Aftermath of Emancipation 13 th Amendment – Outlawed Slavery Black Codes Civil Rights Act of 1866 and 14 th Amendment – Guaranteed citizenship and equal protection to freed slaves Southern states not readmitted to union until they ratify the 14 th Amendment (finally ratified in 1868)

Aftermath of Emancipation 1867 – Radical Reconstruction: Political equality in South guaranteed by presence of federal troops 15 th Amendment – 1870 – Right to vote

Bitterness Grows President Andrew Johnson – His reconstruction plan – original – required Readmission with ratification of 13 th amendment Oath of future loyalty – allows white southerners to vote Freedman’s Bureau Race riots in Memphis and New Orleans – Johnson blames the Radical Republicans

The Jim Crow South As states ratify 14 th Amendment, they regain autonomy – take opportunity to create “Redeemer Governments” (all-white) Federal troops withdrawn in 1877 Social, political, and economic oppression – Literacy tests, poll taxes, white primaries, and “grandfather” clauses – Anti-miscegenation laws and restrictive covenants – “White only” schools

Where’s the Supreme Court? Striking down the Civil Rights Act of 1875 – Because Act attempted to regulate private behavior, not just public discrimination Plessy v. Ferguson and “separate but equal” facilities – Court actually held that it would be wrong to have “mixed” train cars because then whites would be forced to co-mingle with blacks

What Changed? NAACP founded in 1909 Influx of blacks to northern metropolitan areas and their use by political machines Tide of public opinion shifted with revelation of Nazi atrocities Integration of military and Truman’s leadership

Brown v. Board of Education 1954, U.S. Supreme Court struck down “separate but equal” doctrine as applied to elementary schools Unanimous opinion, but left matter of fixing the problem to the lower courts Signaled that Court would really use “strict scrutiny” to weigh discriminatory laws – Compelling government interest – Narrowly tailored means

An Aside on Equal Protection StandardMeansEndsUsed When Strict ScrutinyCompellingNarrowly Tailored Law Implicates Race Heightened Scrutiny ImportantSubstantially Related Law Implicates Gender Rational Basis Test LegitimateRationally Related Everything Else

Congressional Action Civil Rights Act of 1964 – Employment discrimination – “public accommodations” – Gave DoJ power to litigate re: segregated schools Voting Rights Act of 1965 – Outlawed racial gerrymandering and created mechanisms for monitoring Fair Housing Act

Why Our Schools Are Still Segregated Problem of “de facto” segregation Busing only to remedy past de jure segregation White flight Limits on ability of government to regulate private discrimination