AP Government- Civil Rights & Liberties

Civil Liberties

-Rights belonging to all citizens

-Can also be defined as limitations on the power of the government

-Guaranteed by the Constitution, federal laws, and court decisions

Establishment Clause

-First Amendment prohibits government from recognizing an official religion or promoting one religion over another

-Referred to as separation of church and state

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

-Supreme Court ruled that a prayer intended to be recited every school day in New York State public schools violated the Establishment Clause and was unconstitutional

-Court say prayer in public schools crossed line separating church and state

Free Exercise Clause

-First Amendment prohibits government from interfering with a person's right to practice a religion

-Protection limited when it conflicts with another right or a compelling state interest

Reynolds v. United States (1879)

Supreme Court upheld a federal law prohibiting polygamy even though Reynolds, a Mormon, claimed the law limited his religious freedom

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

Supreme Court ruled that Wisconsin could not require Amish parents to send their children to school beyond 8th grade because it would violate long-held religious beliefs

Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (1993)

Court ruled that city ordinances banning animal sacrifice were unconstitutional since they targeted the practices of the Santeria religion

Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)

Supreme Court case that established the "Lemon Test," which details requirements for legislation concerning religion

What are the 3 prongs of the Lemon Test?

-Must have a secular legislative purpose (Purpose Prong)

-Must not have the primary effect of either advancing or inhibiting religion (Effect Prong)

-Must not result in an "excessive government entanglement" with religion (Entanglement Prong)

Freedom of Speech

-Basic right guaranteed by the First Amendment

-Speech has been interpreted to include all types of communication of ideas and opinions, including films, books, flyers, websites, art, as well as "pure speech"

What are limitations on free speech?

Court has upheld various laws that limit the exercise of free speech including: libel and slander laws, obscenity laws, and laws against incitement of violence

Symbolic Speech

-Using actions and symbols to convey an idea rather than words (burning a flag, wearing an armband, etc.)

-Supreme Court has ruled that symbolic speech is protected by the First Amendment

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

Supreme Court ruled that high school students wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War was symbolic speech and could not be banned or punished by the school administration

Texas v. Johnson (1989)

-Supreme Court ruled that burning the U.S. flag was a form of symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment

-In anger over the Court's decision, Congress enacted a federal flag-discretion law, which the Court declared constitutional in 1990

Schenck v. United States (1919)

-Supreme Court upheld conviction of Schenck, who had sent out a flyer urging World War I draftees to protest the draft

-Court held speech was not protected when it constituted a "clear and present danger" to the country in wartime

Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969)

-Court ruled that First Amendment protected speech that advocated violence and revolution as long as there was no imminent danger that the speech would incite a lawless action

-Overturned Whitney v. California (1927)

Explain the First Amendment and the States

-First Amendment did not originally apply to state governments, which were not required to recognize the freedoms it embodied

-Fourteenth Amendment in 1868 provided legal basis under which First Amendment was later applied to states

Due Process Clause

-Contained in the Fourteenth Amendment

-Prohibits states from depriving citizens of "life, liberty, or property without due process of law"

-Basis for extension of Bill of Rights to state governments

Gitlow v. New York (1925)

-Court declared First Amendment rights applied to state governments

-Since then most of the rights of the Bill of Rights have been "incorporated" into the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and applied to state governments

Incorporation

-Application of the rights guaranteed in the federal Constitution's Bill of Rights to state governments

-Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment provides legal structure under which incorporation has taken place

Incorporation Doctrine

The legal doctrine adopted by the Supreme Court that most guarantees of the Bill of Rights are applicable to state governments through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

Freedom of Press

-Basic right guaranteed by the First Amendment

-Closely related to freedom of speech

-Freedom of press includes all mass media used in communicating news and ideas, not just printing presses

Prior Restraint

-Blocking publication or censoring a story before it is published

-Supreme Court has generally rejected prior restraint, thus prohibiting government from blocking publication of news stories

New York Times v. Sullivan (1964)

-Court held that libel laws cannot be used to inhibit what should be a "robust an wide open" debate on public issues

-Court held that the plaintiff must prove the newspaper knowingly or maliciously printed false information in order to obtain damages for libel

Freedom of Assembly and Petition

-First Amendment guarantees "right of the people peacefully to assemble and petition the Government for a redress of grievances"

-Grants citizens the right to express their views through petitions, picketing, demonstrations, parades, and marches

What are limitations of Freedom of Assembly?

-Government cannot block peaceful protests but it can enforce restrictions to protect the rights and safety of others

-Thus, permits to protest that impose time and place limits are generally required and protests that turn violent are usually broken up by police

Due Process of Law

-Generally accepted to mean that government must act in a fair manner according to established rules

-Due process of law includes both substantive due process and procedural due process

Substantive Due Process

Refers to the laws themselves that allow government to take action: Are they fair and constitutional, or is the state overstepping its power?

Procedural Due Process

Refers to the procedures used in carrying out the laws that allow government to take action: Do the procedures being used constitute fair and constitutional process?

Eminent Domain

-The power of the government to take private property for public use (for example, building a highway)

-Constitutional requirements regarding eminent domain: government must follow due process of law and must provide just compensation

Right to Bear Arms

-Second Amendment links right to bear arms with the need for a citizen's militia

-Second Amendment: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed"

Interpretation of Second Amendment

Until 2008, the Supreme Court interpreted Second Amendment to mean there was no Constitutional right to keep and bear arms outside the context of a state militia; District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) overturned this interpretation

Right to Privacy

-No "right to privacy" is mentioned in the Constitution or Bill of Rights

-However, the Supreme Court has determined, based on the First, Third, Fourth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendment, that such a right exists

Ninth Amendment

S-tates the "enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people"

-Constitution recognizes that there may be other rights not actually listed in the Constitution

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

-Court identified privacy as a constitutional right although it was not specifically stated in the Constitution

-Declared a state law banning the sale of contraceptives unconstitutional

-Held birth control decisions were private and not subject to state control

Roe v. Wade (1973)

-Supreme Court voided state laws that outlawed all abortions, saying decision whether or not to terminate a pregnancy is a private matter during first trimester

-In subsequent trimesters, the state has increasing power to regulate or prohibit abortion

Controversy over Roe v. Wade

-Decision remains highly controversial, with many groups seeking to overturn it

-Subsequent Court decisions have narrowed the right to terminate a pregnancy by allowing hospitals to refuse to perform abortions and states to refuse funding for abortions

Lawrence v. Texas (2003)

-Supreme Court held that state sodomy laws were constitutional and that private sexual conduct by consenting adults was protected by right to privacy

-Invalidated state laws prohibiting private homosexual acts

-Overturned Bowers v. Hardwick (1982)

Rights of the Accused

-The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Amendments list rights that apply to persons accused of a crime

-The Fourteenth Amendment extends those protections to apply to state government

Unreasonable Search and Seizure

-Fourth Amendment provides protection

-Search warrant required and can only be obtained by showing probable cause

-Warrant must be specific as to place to be searched and what to be seized

Mapp v. Ohio (1961)

Supreme Court ruled that evidence obtained in an illegal search was not admissible in court and must be excluded from trial

Exclusionary Rule

-Evidence obtained illegally cannot be used against a person in a trial

-Court has relaxed exclusionary rule since Mapp v. Ohio

-For example, if it can be shown that the evidence found in an illegal search would have been found anyway, it is admissible

Protection from Self-Incrimination

Fifth Amendment allows the accused the right to remain silent and not answer question in court of from police

Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

Supreme Court ruled that suspects in police custody must be informed of their rights (the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney)

Right to an Attorney

Sixth Amendment grants the right for the accused to hire an attorney to defend him/her

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

-Supreme Court ruled that those who cannot afford an attorney in criminal cases must have one provided by the state government

-Overturned Betts v. Brady (1942) that held this was only required in capital (death penalty) cases

Sixth Amendment Rights

Right to an attorney, right to a speedy and public trial, right to be told charges against you, right to confront (and cross-examine) witnesses, and right to call witnesses in your favor

Cruel and Unusual Punishment

-Eighth Amendment protects convicted persons from "cruel and unusual punishment"

-Most recent cases involving this protection have focused on the constitutionality of death penalty

Constitutionality of Death Penalty

-Gregg v. Georgia (1976) affirmed constitutionality of death penalty

-Supreme Court ruled death penalty unconstitutional for mentally retarded felons (Atkins v. Virginia, 2002) and for crimes committed under age 18 (Roper v. Simmons, 2005)

Civil Rights

-Right of a minority group to be free from discrimination by the majority

-Equal treatment of minorities by states guaranteed by Equal Protection Clause of Fourteenth Amendment and, at the federal level, by the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment

Civil Rights Movement

-African American movement to gain equal rights, in many cases they were treated as second class citizens

-During 1950s and 1960s the movement was most active and achieved several landmark successes

Amendments that transitioned from Slavery to Freedom

-Thirteenth Amendment (1865): abolished slavery

-Fourteenth Amendment (1866): required states to treat blacks and whites equally

-Fifteenth Amendment (1870): guaranteed right to vote to all races

Equal Protection Clause

-Contained in Fourteenth Amendment

-Declares that no state shall "deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"

-Protects minorities from discrimination by state governments

Discrimination Against African Americans

-In spite of Fourteenth Amendment, many states continued to use discriminatory practices to prevent African Americans from participating in political process

-Discriminatory practices included black codes and Jim Crow laws

Black Codes

-State laws passed to keep former slaves in a type of political bondage

-Included barriers to voting such as literacy tests ad poll taxes

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

-Landmark Supreme Court decision declared racial segregation in schools unconstitutional

-Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson (1896); Declared separate facilities "inherently unequal"

Twenty-Fourth Amendment

Abolished poll taxes in 1964, which were used to subvert the Fifteenth Amendment and keep African Americans from voting

Civil Rights Act of 1964

-Landmark legislation that banned racial segregation in schools, public transportation, public facilities and employment—ended Jim Crow

-Based on the federal government's power to control interstate commerce

Voting Rights Act of 1965

-Landmark legislation that outlawed discriminatory voting practices responsible for widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans in the South

-Ended literacy tests

Loving v. Virginia (1967)

-Court declared state laws prohibiting interracial marriage unconstitutional

-Overturned Pace v. Alabama (1883) and ended all race-based legal restrictions on marriage in the U.S.

-Based on the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection and Due Process Clause

Women's Movement

-Movement by women to end discrimination and gain equal rights

-Most active in 1960s and 1970s

-Achieved passage of importation legislation but failed in effort to pass equal rights amendment for women

Women an Civil Rights Act of 1964

-Ground-breaking law not only ended segregation in the South but also banned job discrimination on the basis of gender

-Established Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to enforce ban on racial and gender discrimination

Internment of Japanese Americans

-During World War II, Japanese Americans (who had broken no laws) were forced to sell their property and live imprisoned in relocation camps

-Supreme Court upheld this action in Korematsu v. U.S. in 1944

Korematsu v. U.S. (1944)

-Supreme Court declared the internment of Japanese Americans in World War II unconstitutional

-Held that containment of Americans of Japanese ancestry was justified by compelling national interest in preventing spying in wartime

Affirmative Action

-Policy designed to correct effects of past racial or gender discrimination by giving certain preferences in education or employment to these groups

-Courts are increasingly limiting the use of racial preferences entailed in affirmative action

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978)

-Supreme Court ruled that affirmative action quotas used by the University of California were unconstitutional

-However, Court ruled that race could be considered as one of a complex of factors