9/12/17

AP GOV
CIVIL RIGHTS &
PUBLIC POLICY
REVIEWED!
Government in America(Pearson) Chapter 5
American Government: (Wilson) Chapter 6
Institutions & Policies 1  

• Civil  liber)es:  Cons)tu)onal  

protec)ons  against  the  gov’t  
• Civil  Rights:  protec)ons  for  
individuals  and  groups  from  
discrimina)on  by  the  
government  or  other  
individuals  
• Not  un)l  1868  that  “equality”  is  
men)oned  in  the  Cons)tu)on  
• 14th  Amendment:  forbids  states  
from  denying  “equal  protec)on  
of  the  laws”  
– Equal  protec)on  clause  has  
oFen  been  used  to  support  
the  advancement  of  
equality  
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• The  courts  have  developed  tests/

standards  to  evaluate  whether  a  law  
violates  the  equal  protec)on  clause  
• 1)  Reasonable:  law  must  NOT  be  
arbitrary  &  reflect  legit  gov’t  purpose  
• 2)  Inherently  suspect:  classifica)ons  
based  on  race  and  ethnicity  are  seen  as  
inherently  suspect  
– Must  prove  there  is  a  compelling  
public  interest  
– Must  demonstrate  no  other  way  to  
achieve  the  legi)mate  purpose  of  
the  law  
• 3)  Intermediate  scru)ny:  laws  that  
discriminate  based  on  gender  have  a  
lower  standard  to  meet  
– Example:  law  that  restricts  draF  to  
only  men  has  been  ruled  
cons)tu)onal    
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• American slavery: nearly 250 years of

slavery
– Chattel slavery
• Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857): slaves
were property with NO legal rights
under the Constitution
• 13th Amendment (1865): banned slavery
• Era of Reconstruction (1865-1877):
temporary progress
• 14th Amendment: States must protect
rights and provide “equal protection of
the law” & “due process”
– Declared all persons born in the U.S. are
citizens of the US (adios Dred Scott)
• 15th Amendment= universal male
suffrage. Right to vote could not be
denied “on account of race, color, or
previous condition of servitude.” 4

• Official end of Reconstruction in 1876

• The Court has at times allowed the
RESTRICTION of civil rights
• Segregation:
– South: Jim Crow laws legalized racial
segregation
• De jure segregation: segregation
mandated by law
– North: De facto segregation-
segregation exists, not required by law
– Federal gov’t: segregation enforced in
the military
• Civil Rights Cases (1883): the 14th
amendment did NOT prevent private
businesses or individuals from racial
discrimination
• Plessy v. Ferguson (1896):
segregation was not unconstitutional
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– “separate but equal”

• Truman used the powers of the

Presidency (Executive Order 9981) to
desegregate the armed forces

• Brown v. Board of Education I (1954):

ruled that race based school
segregation violates the 14th
Amendment’s equal protection
clauses
– Reversed “separate but equal”
decision of Plessy
• Brown v. Board of Education II (1955):
public schools must desegregate
“with all deliberate speed”
• De jure (segregation by law) vs de
facto discrimination (not required by
law)
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Civil Rights Movement & Public Policy

• The civil rights movement utilized
sustained non-violent
disobedience to force change
• Television helped build support for
the movement

• Civil Rights Act of 1964:

discrimination by private business,
state, or local governments is
illegal
– Can’t discriminate in public
accommodation and/or in
employment
– Established the Equal
Employment Opportunity
Commission that banned
discrimination in employment &
investigated violations 7

Civil Rights: The Right to Vote

• 15th Amendment (1870):
guaranteed voting rights to
black MEN
• Denial of the vote:
– Literacy tests, poll taxes,
grandfather clauses, white
primary, and violence/
intimidation
• 24th Amendment (1964)
outlawed collection of poll
taxes
• Voting Rights Act 1965 ended
efforts to prevent African
Americans from voting in the
south (literacy test banned)
– Can’t deny vote to a citizen
because of race
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– Enforced by federal officials

THE RIGHTS OF OTHER MINORITY GROUPS

• Native Americans: oldest minority
group, the O.G. Americans
– Dawes Act of 1887 banned
Native American religions,
required children go to
boarding schools (policy of
assimilation)
– Indian Citizenship Act of 1924:
granted citizenship and the
right to vote
– American Indian Movement
fought discrimination
• Latinos (Hispanic Americans):
largest minority group
– Hernandez v. Texas (1954):
Texas CANNOT stop Hispanics
from serving on juries
• Issue of undocumented 9
immigration & immigration policy

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THE RIGHTS OF OTHER MINORITY GROUPS

• Asian Americans have also
faced various forms of
discrimination
– Chinese Exclusion Act
(1883): 1st major restriction
on immigration- race based
L
– Korematsu v. United States
(1944): internment of over
100,000 Japanese American
WAS constitutional

• Arab Americans and Muslims:

faced increased discrimination
following 9/11

10

THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN

• Battle for the right to vote
– Seneca Falls Declaration of
Sentiments (1848)
– 19th Amendment (1920):
women’s suffrage
• Some western states had
already granted suffrage
• Post 19th Amendment
(1920-1960): divergent goals of
the movement
– Equality in workplace
– Social feminists advocated
for morality in public life
– Equal Rights Amendment
introduced in 1923
• Viewed by some as a
threat to the family 11

SECOND FEMINIST WAVE

• A revitalized women’s
movement grew during
the 1950s and 60s.

• Betty Friedan created

the National Organization
for Women (NOW).
– Campaigned for Equal
Rights Amendment
(ERA)

• Equal Rights Amendment

fell 3 states short of
ratification in 1972. 12

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WOMEN AND PUBLIC POLICY

• Battle for workplace equality:
– Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited
employment gender discrimination
– Equal Pay Act of 1963 made it
illegal to pay men and women
different wages if they perform
equal work in same workplace
– Title IX of the Education Act of
1972 bans gender discrimination in
education programs receiving
federal money (including athletics)
• Sexual Harassment:
– Prohibited by Civil Rights Act of
1964
– Retaliation by employers is illegal
• Women in the military:
– Serve in all branches of the military
– Only men are required to register 13
for the draft

OTHER GROUPS UNDER THE CIVIL RIGHTS UMBRELLA

• 14th Amendment’s equal
protection clause used to fight
discrimination
• “Graying of America”
– Some protections against age
discrimination

• People with Disabilities

– Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA) of 1990:
• Mandated “reasonable
accommodations” be made
for access to public
facilities
• Prohibited employment
discrimination against the
disabled 14

OTHER GROUPS UNDER THE CIVIL RIGHTS UMBRELLA

• LGBTQ Rights
– Stonewall Riots (1969) gave
rise to the modern gay rights
movement
– Bowers v. Hardwick (1986):
ruled that states could legally
forbid sex between same sex
couples
– Lawrence v. Texas (2003):
states can’t forbid private
sexual conduct since this is a
violation of the right to privacy
– “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy
ended in 2011
– Many states legalized same-sex
marriage
– Obergefell v. Hodges (2015):
same sex couples have a
constitutional right to marry
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AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
• Giving priority to groups who were
previously discriminated against
– Goal is to increase opportunities
– Controversial and hotly debated:
“reverse discrimination?”
• Regents of the University of
California v. Bakke (1978)
– UC Davis had quotas for number of
disadvantaged groups to be
admitted
– Court ruled that racial quotas are
unconstitutional
– BUT, race can be used a criterion
for admission
• Continued debate about
affirmative action
– California Proposition 209: banned
state affirmative action programs 16

THE BIG IDEA

• 14th Amendment’s requirement
that no state denies the “equal
protection of the laws” has
allowed for substantial progress
to be made in the realm of civil
rights

• Protecting and enforcing civil

rights has led to a large
INCREASE in the power and size
of government
– 14th amendment
– Brown v. Board of Education
– Civil Rights Act of 1964
– Voting Rights Act of 1965 17
– Americans with Disabilities Act

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