American Government Unit 2

Conflicts in civil liberties often arise because

the Bill of Rights lists several competing rights

The key clauses in the Fourteenth Amendment are the

due process clause and the equal protection clause

In the Gitlow case, the Supreme Court held that

federal guarantees of free speech and free press also apply to the states

Which term best describes the manner in which the Supreme Court has applied the Bill of Rights to the states?

selective incorporation

The First Amendment establishes

freedom of expression and freedom of religion

The definition of prior restraint is

censorship of a publication

In order to decide how far Congress could go to restrict freedom of speech, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes introduced the

clear-and-present-danger test

Which of the following statements about hate crimes is TRUE?

To be punished for a hate crime, the bigotry must result in direct, physical harm.

Written defamation of character is known as

Libel

It is much harder to win a libel suit if you are a(n)

Public figure

___ is not protected by the First Amendment.

Obscenity

One form of symbolic speech permitted by the Supreme Court is

flag burning

Students cannot exercise rights that obstruct the

educational mission of the school they're attending

The two clauses of the First Amendment that deal with religion are concerned with

free exercise and establishment

For the Supreme Court to uphold conscientious objection to military service, the objection must be rooted in a(n)

deeply help moral, ethical, or religious belief

The historical source for the "wall of separation" between church and state comes from

the writings of Thomas Jefferson

The Court has allowed ___________ to be displayed on the lawn outside of the Texas state capitol.

the Ten Commandments

Holds that evidence gathered in violation of the Constitution cannot be used in a trial

Exclusionary rule

Mapp v. Ohio was a notable constitutional decision because it

used the exclusionary rule to enforce constitutional guarantees

If you have been arrested at home, the police can search all the following without a warrant EXCEPT

a parked car in your driveway

Each of the following is a way in which the Supreme Court has relaxed the exclusionary rule EXCEPT

search warrants

The USA Patriot Act was designed to

increase federal powers to investigate terrorists

In 2006 Congress established a "neutral decision maker" consisting of military commissions trying

captured alien enemy combatants

In 1978, the ______ was passed, which required the president to go before a special court to obtain approval for electronic eavesdropping on those thought to be foreign spies.

Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act

Challenge us to define what we mean by religion, Americanism, and decency

Civil liberties

The _______ Amendment seemed to guarantee equal rights for all, regardless of race.

Fourteenth

In 1880, the Supreme Court deemed serving on a jury could not be denied on racial grounds as it is a(n)

essential right of citizenship

The Court's landmark decision in Plessy v. Ferguson began when an individual challenged a law requiring blacks and whites to

occupy separate train cars

When racial integration was an unpopular cause, the NAACP used ________ as its battleground

the Supreme Court

Which of the following statements about Brown v. Board of Education is correct?

It outlawed government-imposed segregation.

As its rationale for the decision in Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court relied primarily on

social science evidence

The difference between de facto and de jure segregation is that the former ____________, while the latter _______________

results from private choices, results from public law

Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Reagan all opposed ____ as a racial integration method.

Busing

Peacefully violating a law and accepting punishment, such as Rosa Parks's arrest, is known as

civil disobedience

The _____ Amendment made clear that no state may deny the right to vote on the basis of sex.

Nineteenth

Laws affecting race are subject to _________ scrutiny. Laws affecting gender are subject to _________ scrutiny.

Strict; intermediate

In the Virginia Military Institute case, the Court required a single-sex school to supply ________ for excluding the other gender.

An exceedingly persuasive justification

If a person requests sexual favors as a condition of employment or promotion, the employer is _____ liable

Strictly

To be aware of a hostile work environment as an employer and do nothing about it is to be

Negligent

Which of the following statements regarding police powers is TRUE?

They are powers exercised by the states, including the authority to create police departments and all laws related to public order and secure the safety and morals of citizens.

The Court has allowed all of the following provisions regulating abortion EXCEPT

the consent of a married woman's husband

Giving people an equal chance to succeed is known as equality of

Opportunity

Supporters of equality of opportunity consider affirmative action to be a form of

reverse discrimination

Supporters of equality of opportunity tend to have _________ beliefs, and supporters of equality of results tend to have _________ beliefs.

orthodox; progressive

Which of the following statements regarding racial discrimination resulted from the Supreme Court decision in the case involving a small construction company named Adarand?

All racial discrimination, whether it's helping or hurting a minority, is subject to strict scrutiny.

In Lawrence v. Texas, the Court decided

state law may not ban sexual relations between same-sex partners

First state to legalize same-sex marriage

Massachusetts

In United States v. Windsor, the constitutionality of _________ was questioned

the Defense of Marriage Act

Originally, Northern support for civil rights was gained by the perception that

civil rights simply involved an unfair contest between Southern whites and Southern blacks

According to the text, which of these remain among the most divisive civil rights issues in modern American politics?

affirmative action and abortion

Civil Liberties

Rights - chiefly, rights to be free of government of interference - accorded to an individual by the Constitution: free speech, free press, etc.

Fourteenth Amendment

No state shall "deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law" and that no state shall "deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws

Due Process of Law

Denies the government the right, without due process, to deprive people of life, liberty, and property

Equal Protection of the Laws

A standard of equal treatment that must be observed by the government

Palko v. Connecticut (1937)

Certain rights should be applied to the states because they "represented the very essence of ordered liberty" and were "principles of justice so rooted in the traditions and conscience of our people as to be ranked fundamental"

District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)

Did not allow federal government to ban the private possession of firearms

McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

Extended Heller case to apply to the state (states cannot ban firearms either)

First Amendment

Freedom of expression and freedom of religion

Freedom of Expression

Right of people to speak, publish, and assemble

Freedom of Religion

People shall be free to exercise their religion, and government may not establish a religion

Prior Restraint

government censorship of information before it is published or broadcast

Clear-and-Present-Danger Test

Law should not punish speech unless there was a clear and present danger of producing harmful actions

Selective Incorporation Process

The process whereby the Court has applied most, but not all, parts of the Bill of Rights to the states

Gitlow v. New York (1925)

Court says the First Amendment applies to states

Four forms of speaking not granted constitutional protection

Libel, obscenity, symbolic speech, and false advertising

Libel

Writing that falsely injures another person

Slander

Oral statement that falsely injures another person

Which amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the right to freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition?

First Amendment

Which Supreme Court case established the "clear and present danger" test for free speech?

Schenck v. United States

The "exclusionary rule," which prohibits the use of illegally obtained evidence in court, was established in which case?

Mapp v. Ohio

The incorporation doctrine makes certain protections in the Bill of Rights applicable to the states through which amendment?

Fourteenth Amendment

Which of the following is not protected by the First Amendment?

Obscenity

The Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education (1954) ruled that:

Separate but equal facilities are inherently unequal.

Which constitutional amendment abolished slavery in the United States?

Thirteenth Amendment

Which piece of legislation outlawed discrimination in employment and public accommodations based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin?

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Affirmative action policies aim to:

Provide additional opportunities for historically disadvantaged groups.

The concept of "suspect classification" refers to:

Laws that discriminate based on race or ethnicity.

Which amendment protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures?

Fourth Amendment

Which landmark case required that suspects be informed of their rights to remain silent and to have an attorney present during police interrogation?

Miranda v. Arizona

What does the "right to privacy," though not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution, rely on for its legal foundation?

The Fourth and Ninth Amendments

In which case did the Supreme Court rule that students in public schools have a right to free speech, as long as it does not disrupt the educational process?

Tinker v. Des Moines

Which of the following protections is not provided by the Sixth Amendment?

Right to bear arms

Which amendment guaranteed African American men the right to vote?

Fifteenth Amendment

Which case upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the "separate but equal" doctrine?

Plessy v. Ferguson

What is the primary function of the Equal Protection Clause in the Fourteenth Amendment?

To prevent states from denying any person equal protection under the law

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was primarily designed to:

Eliminate literacy tests and other barriers to voting for African Americans

Which of the following Supreme Court decisions declared laws prohibiting interracial marriage unconstitutional?

Loving v. Virginia

Symbolic Speech

An act that conveys a political message

What act of symbolic speech is allowed?

Flag-burning

McConnell v. Federal Election Commission (2003)

Upholds 2002 campaign finance reform law

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission

Denied corporations and labor unions right to run political ads

Free-exercise Clause

First Amendment requirement that law cannot prevent free exercise of religion

Establishment Clause

First Amendment ban on laws "respecting an establishment of religion"

"Wall of Separation"

court ruling that government cannot be involved with religion

What makes involvement constitutional?

1. It has a strictly secular purpose.

2. Its primary effect neither advances nor inhibits religion.

3. It does not foster an excessive government entanglement with religion.

Exclusionary Rule

Improperly gathered evidence may not be introduced in a criminal trial

What Amendments lead to the exclusionary rule?

Fourth and Fifth

Search Warrant

A judge's order authorizing a search

Probable Cause

Reasonable cause for issuing a search warrant or making an arrest; more than mere suspicion

When can the police search you without it being unreasonable?

they have a search warrant or have legally arrested you