American National Government: Civil Rights, Compelled Speech, and Fundamental Rights

Vocabulary flashcards covering affirmative action, compelled speech, expressive association, privacy in the home, Title VII protections, and fundamental marriage rights from American National Government lecture notes.

Gratz v. Bollinger (Crazy Bounger v. MICH)

A Supreme Court affirmative action case regarding the University of Michigan's undergraduate admissions policy, which awarded minority applicants 20 out of 100 points; the Court ruled that while diversity is a compelling state interest, the policy was not the least restrictive alternative because too much weight was given to minority status.

Grutter v. Bollinger

A Supreme Court case upholding the University of Michigan Law School admissions policy that considered race solely as an individualized factor (similar to the Harvard plan approved in Bakke); the Court held it met compelling state interest and least restrictive alternative standards, with Justice O'Connor noting affirmative action might end in 25 years.

Students for Fair Academic Admission v. Harvard/Univ of North Carolina

Supreme Court decision that ended affirmative action in higher education, ruling that diversity is no longer a compelling state interest, race-based admissions are not the least restrictive alternative, and the policies discriminate against Asians; race may only be considered indirectly through an applicant's essay, and military schools are exempt.

West Virginia v. Barnette

Supreme Court case that reversed Gobitis v. Minersville, establishing that the state cannot compel students (specifically Jehovah's Witnesses who object to idol worship) to recite the pledge of allegiance, as the government cannot compel an individual to communicate a message under the Free Speech and Free Exercise Clauses.

Wooley v. Maynard (Wooley v. Manard)

Supreme Court decision holding that New Hampshire could not prosecute a driver for covering the state motto "Live Free or Die" on his license plate, establishing that the state cannot compel an individual to endorse or display a government message.

Sons of Confederate Veterans v. Walker (Sons of Confederacy v. Walker)

Supreme Court ruling holding that Texas could reject a specialty license plate depicting the Confederate flag because specialty plates are government speech rather than a public forum, granting the government the authority to choose its own message.

Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission

A case in which a baker refused on religious and compelled speech grounds to create a custom wedding cake for a same-sex couple; the Supreme Court sidestepped the core constitutional question and remanded the case because the Colorado Civil Rights Commission demonstrated religious hostility and failed to treat him fairly.

303 Creative LLC v. Elenis (303 Creative Design v. Elenis)

Supreme Court ruling holding that the state of Colorado could not use public accommodation laws to compel a web designer to create custom wedding websites for same-sex couples against her religious beliefs, as compelling creative services constitutes unconstitutional compelled speech.

Expressive Association

A First Amendment doctrine recognizing that a group with an identity has the right to exclude individuals whose inclusion would alter or undermine that identity, balanced against compelling government interests such as eradicating discrimination.

Roberts v. United States Jaycees (Roberts v. Minnesota Jay Cees)

Supreme Court ruling holding that Minnesota's anti-discrimination law could require the Jaycees to admit female members because the state's compelling interest in ending gender discrimination outweighed the club's freedom of association rights, largely because the group was non-selective.

Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Group of Boston (Hurley v. VFW)

Supreme Court decision holding that the private organizers of the South Boston St. Patrick's Day parade could not be compelled under state anti-discrimination law to permit a GLBT veterans group to march under their own banner, as doing so violated the organizers' freedom of expressive association.

Bowers v. Hardwick (1986)

A 5-4 Supreme Court decision ruling that states have the constitutional authority to outlaw sodomy, holding that consensual sodomy is not a fundamental liberty or privacy interest protected by the Fourteenth Amendment.

Lawrence v. Texas (2003)

Supreme Court decision that overturned Bowers v. Hardwick, ruling that consensual sexual conduct between adults in the privacy of the home cannot be criminalized, as it is protected by the Fourteenth Amendment's liberty and privacy protections.

Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (Dale v. Boy Scouts)

Supreme Court ruling holding that the Boy Scouts, as a private expressive association, had a First Amendment right to exclude a gay scoutmaster because forcing his inclusion would conflict with their internal values, prioritizing freedom of association over anti-discrimination laws.

Rumsfeld v. Forum for Academic and Institutional Rights, Inc. (Rumsfeld v. FAIR)

Supreme Court ruling upholding the Solomon Amendment as a legitimate congressional spending condition, requiring universities accepting federal funds to provide military recruiters equal access to campus without violating freedom of speech or association.

Romer v. Evans

Supreme Court ruling striking down a Colorado constitutional amendment that prevented local governments from enacting protected status for gay individuals, holding that the amendment lacked a rational basis and failed equal protection review.

Bostock v. Clayton County

A 6-3 Supreme Court decision authored by Justice Gorsuch holding that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation, as firing an individual for being gay inherently discriminates on the basis of sex.

Stonewall Riots

Riots at a New York gay club that served as the catalyst and first major event of the modern gay rights movement, which drew inspiration from the broader civil rights movement.

Sodomy (Course Definition)

Any sexual conduct not between a married man and woman looking each other in the eyes.

Stanley v. Georgia

Supreme Court obscenity decision establishing that private possession of pornography inside the home is protected under a fundamental, geographically defined right to privacy.

Osborne v. Ohio (Osbourne v. Ohio)

Supreme Court decision holding that the right to privacy within the home does not protect the possession of child pornography, as the state holds a compelling state interest and uses the least restrictive alternative to eradicate child exploitation.

Loving v. Virginia

Supreme Court decision striking down Virginia's anti-miscegenation laws prohibiting interracial marriage; the Court held the statutes violated equal protection due to race discrimination and due process because marriage is a fundamental right.

Zablocki v. Redhail (Zaplocki v. Redhail)

Supreme Court ruling invalidating a Wisconsin statute that prohibited individuals behind on child support payments from marrying, reaffirming that marriage is a fundamental right requiring a compelling state interest and least restrictive alternative.

Turner v. Safley (Turner v. Safely)

Supreme Court ruling recognizing that prison inmates retain a fundamental right to marry under a rational basis standard, though this right does not extend to conjugal visits or procreation while incarcerated.

Goodridge v. Department of Public Health (Goodridge v. Mass)

Landmark state court decision that made Massachusetts the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.

Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)

Federal legislation passed by Congress establishing that: 1) federal law defines marriage solely between a man and a woman, and 2) no state is required under the Full Faith and Credit Clause to recognize same-sex marriages performed in another state.

United States v. Windsor (US v. Windsor)

Supreme Court decision striking down Section 3 (part 1) of DOMA as a violation of equal protection and due process, holding that the federal government must recognize legally performed same-sex marriages.

Hollingsworth v. Perry

Supreme Court case reviewing California's Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriage; the Court declined to rule on the merits or establish a fundamental right to marry, instead dismissing the appeal due to a lack of legal standing by the initiative's sponsors.

Obergefell v. Hodges

Supreme Court decision establishing that marriage is a fundamental right under the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses; the Court struck down the remaining parts of DOMA and mandated that states must license same-sex marriages and grant full faith and credit to lawful marriages from other states.

Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization (Thomas Concurrence)

Concurring opinion by Justice Thomas asserting that because substantive due process rights lack constitutional grounding, the Court should reconsider all prior precedents rooted in sexual privacy, including access to contraception, sodomy decriminalization, and same-sex marriage.