Unit 3 (Civil Rights and Civil Liberties)

bill of rights

first ten amendments to the constitution that are designed to protect individual liberties and rights

civil liberties

liberties that belong to all citizens and place limitations on the government and are guaranteed by the constitution and legislation and judicial decisions

establishment clause

a clause in the first amendment that prohibits the government from recognizing an official religion or promoting one religion over another and referred to as separation of church and state

Engel v. Vitale (1962)

school sanctioned prayer and sponsorship of religious activities violated the established clause of the 1st amendment

free exercise clause

a clause in the first amendment that prohibits the government from interfering with a person's right to practice a religion

Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)

compelling Amish students to attend school past the 8th grade violated the free-exercise clause of the 1st amendment

symbolic speech

using actions and symbols to convey an idea rather than words (wearing and armband or flag burning) is protected by the 1st amendment

Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)

high school students wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War was symbolic speech and could not be banned or punished by school administration because symbolic speech is protected by the 1st amendment

clear and present danger doctrine

used to test whether limitations may be placed on 1st amendment free speech rights

prior restraint

blocking publication or censoring a story before it is published and has been generally rejected by the court thus not allowing government to block publication of news stories

Schenck v. United States (1919)

limited free speech and held that speech was not protected when it constituted a "clear and present danger" to the country in wartime

New York Times v. United States (1971)

expanded free press and refused to allow the federal government to block publication of the Pentagon Papers (a sensitive internal review of the government's Vietnam War policies) despite Nixon's executive order to suspend publication

bill of rights and the states

did not originally apply to state governments

due process clause of the 14th amendment

prohibits states from depriving due process of law (life and liberty and property) and has been used as the basis for extending the bill of rights (civil liberties) to states

selective incorporation

process by which U.S. courts have applied portions of the bill of rights to the states using the due process clause of the 14th amendment

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

the court ruled that the 2nd amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is applicable to state and local government through the due process clause of the 14th amendment

Miranda rule

the rule that police are obliged to warn you that anything you say may be used as evidence and to read you your constitutional rights (5th and 6th amendment rights)

USA Patriot Act (2001)

a legislative act that was used to expand the power of the federal government (after 9/11) and give federal officials greater authority to take measures to combat terrorism

USA Freedom Act (2015)

a legislative act that was that was used to expand the power of the federal government and went into effect after the Patriot Act expired that restored many provisions of the patriot act but limited the collection of telecommunication metadata of citizens by the National Security Agency

Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)

the court ruled that 6th amendment right to an attorney is applicable to state government through the due process clause of the 14th amendment

exclusionary rule

prohibits evidence of criminal activity found by police without a search warrant to be used in a trial

Roe v. Wade (1973)

the court ruled that the inherent right to privacy found in the 4th amendment is applicable to state government through the due process clause of the 14th amendment thus allowing a woman to terminate a pregnancy the first trimester

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

a state's ban on the use of contraceptives violated the right to marital privacy-the case concerned a Connecticut law that criminalized the encouragement or use of birth control.

Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization (2022)

the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion; and, the authority to regulate abortion is "returned to the people and their elected representatives."

civil rights

rights that protect groups from discrimination and provide equality before the law that are the result acts of government

Letter from a Birmingham Jail

authored by MLK, Jr. and arguably the most important written document of the civil rights era that encouraged non-violent protest against segregation and inspired subsequent social movements seeking equality before the law

equal protection clause of the 14th amendment

prohibits states from discrimination and denying to any person equal protection under the law and has been used to extend civil rights to the states

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

using the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment the court ruled that separate but equal was inherently unequal and marked the end of legal segregation

civil rights act of 1964

-made discrimination in public accommodations such as hotels and restaurants illegal based on race, religion, or national origin

-made discrimination in employment illegal based on race, religion, or national origin

voting rights act of 1965

-federal law that increased government supervision of local election practices

-act suspended the use of literacy tests to prevent disadvantaged people from voting

Title IX of Education Act of 1972

banned sex discrimination in educational institutions

affirmative action

an action or policy favoring those who tend to suffer from discrimination especially in relation to employment or education