1. CHAPTER 5 AP US GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Civil Rights
CHAPTER 5
AP US GOVERNMENT & POLITICS

2. Principles of Civil Liberties & Civil Rights
Distinction:
Civil Liberties involve basic freedoms
Civil Rights protection against discriminatory treatment
Civil Liberties are protected by Amendment 1
Civil Rights are protected by Amendment 5 (against the national govt), Amendment 14 (against the state govts) & by congressional legislation

3. Principles of Civil Liberties & Civil Rights
Relative Nature of these:
These are not absolute
Balancing test: courts balance individual rights & liberties with society’s need for order & stability
People to whom these are guaranteed:
Most rights & liberties are granted to all in US; regardless of citizenship
Exceptions: non-citizens cannot vote, serve on juries, stay in the US unconditionally, hold public office or certain jobs

4. The Struggle for Equal Rights

5. Women 1st wave: Seneca Falls Convention, 1848
Struggle for the vote = 19th Amendment, 1920

6. Women 2nd wave: Rise of feminists like Betty Friedan
Rise of NOW & other women’s groups (EMILY’s List)
Betty Friedan:
Feminist
The Feminine Mystique: depicted women’s lives in 1960s as stifling
Co-founded the National Organization for Women (NOW)
Emily’s List
PAC that helps elect pro-choice democratic female candidates
Founded in 1985
Early Money is Like Yeast
Bundles contributes to the campaigns of pro-choice Democratic women running in targeted races

7. Women Legislation: Equal Pay Act of 1963
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Title IX of Education Act of 1972
Equal Rights Amendment (failed)
Equal Pay Act of 1963: to prohibit discrimination on account of sex in the payment of wages by employers
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964: prohibited employment discrimination on basis of sex
Title IX of Education Act: prohibited gender discrimination in federally funded subsidized education programs, including athletics
Equal Rights Amendment: defeated
Originally written by Alice Paul
Introduced in Congress in 1923, & re-introduced every session of Congress until 1972
Re-introduced in 1972, passed both houses of Congress but didn’t make it through the states

8. Women Success in electoral politics
Sex-sensitive issues: war/peace, education, pornography, abortion
1992: Year of the Woman: many elected to Congress
Soccer Moms, Million Mom March (gun control), Security Moms
Active interest groups: NOW, Feminist Majority, EMILY’s LIST
In 111th Congress, 74 women hold House seats; 17 women hold Senate seats (1992)
In current Congress (114th): 84 in House; 20 in Senate
Feminist Majority: non-profit organization dedicated to women’s equality, reproductive health & non-violence

9. African Americans 13% of population
De Jure segregation (Jim Crow laws)
De Facto segregation
Civil Rights Movement (1950s & 1960s)
Court cases
Federal legislation

10. African Americans Success in electoral politics
Esp. at state & local level
Voting rates have increased
Backlash against affirmative action
Achievement gap issue
U.C. Regents v. Bakke, 1978: race can be taken into account as a factor in admission decisions.
b. Richmond v. Croson, 1989: banned city set-aside programs.
c. Gratz v. Bollinger, 2003: struck down use of “bonus points” for race in undergraduate admissions at Univ. of Michigan
d. Grutter v. Bollinger, 2003: allowed use of race as a general factor in law school admissions at University of Michigan
e. CA Proposition 209 banned state affirmative action programs
5. Racial gerrymandering banned (Shaw
v. Reno). Race cannot be “overriding, predominant force” in redistricting (Miller v. Johnson)
Achievement gap: observed, persistent disparity of educational measures between the performance of groups of students, esp. groups defined by socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, & gender

11. Hispanics 15% of population Play a key role in electoral politics
Key issues:
Bilingualism
Immigration
Main groups: Mexican-Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cubans, Central Americans
Law v. Nichols (1974): schools must take active steps to help non-English speaking students
States must now provide bilingual ballots for areas with high concentration of non-English speakers
In an era of close elections, neither party wants to offend Hispanics by taking a restrictive position on immigration
May 1, 2006: Day without Immigrants = boycott to show importance of immigrants in US society
Supported Bush 43 but also Obama

12. Asians 4% of population Key issues: Immigration
Reverse discrimination in college admissions
Studies show that Asian Americans meet college admission standards far out of proportion to their representation in the US; that they often need test scores hundreds of points higher than applicants from other ethnic groups for an equal chance at admission

13. Equal Protection Under the Law
Discrimination
Definition: classification/treating groups differently
Some is inevitable (e.g. age requirements)
14th Amendment: bans state govts from practicing unreasonable discrimination

14. Equal Protection Under the Law
Court tests used to determine if state government discrimination is constitutional
Rational basis test
Discrimination is constitutional if it has a reasonable relationship to a proper purpose of govt
Burden of proof is on plaintiff
Examples of acceptable discrimination: polygamy, marriage age
Cannot use rational basis test if case involves a suspect class or a fundamental right

15. Equal Protection Under the Law
Suspect classifications test
Suspect class: one that has historically suffered unequal treatment on the basis of race or national origin
When govt discriminates on this basis, burden of proof is on the defendant (the govt)
Strict scrutiny: there must be a compelling purpose for the discrimination to be constitutional

16. Equal Protection Under the Law
Quasi-suspect classification test (heightened scrutiny)
Quasi-suspect class: sex
Scrutiny for sex discrimination is not as high as for race
To justify discrimination, states must show that the law bears some relation to important governmental objectives
E.g. male only draft registration has been allowed

17. Equal Protection Under the Law
Fundamental rights test
Court subjects laws which deny fundamental rights to strict scrutiny
Fundamental rights: those in Constitution, explicit & implicit
Has been used in cases such as Roe v. Wade
Implicit rights: political association, privacy

18. Private Discrimination & Federal Response
What sources protect against discrimination by private individuals or businesses?
13th Amendment has been broadly interpreted to prohibit the relics of slavery
Commerce clauses
Power to tax & spend: attaching strings to federal grants & contracts
Federal legislation
5th & 14th Amendments prohibit govt from discriminating

19. Federal Laws & Discrimination
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Civil Rights Act of 1968
Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990
Civil Rights Act of 1964:
Title II: bans discrimination in places of public accommodations on the basis of color, national origin, or religion
Title VII: prohibits employment discrimination on the same bases + sex; employers cannot be required to give racial preferences to remedy past discrimination, but they may voluntarily do so; enforced by EEOC
Civil Rights Act of 1968: (Fair Housing Act)
Restrictive covenants had previously been declared unconstitutional
This act banned housing discrimination on the same bases as above
Age Discrimination in Employment Act: bans age discrimination for jobs unless age is related to job performance
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990: bans job & access to facilities discrimination if reasonable accommodation can be made