Civil Liberties and Civil Rights

Comprehensive question-and-answer flashcards covering civil liberties, civil rights, due process, incorporation, landmark legislation, and voting rights amendments.

How are civil liberties defined?

Civil liberties are protections against government that guarantee the protection of persons and property from arbitrary acts of government.

What are four key examples of civil liberties listed in the notes?

Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the guarantee of a fair trial.

What basic freedoms are guaranteed under the First Amendment?

Freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

What is the Bill of Rights, and how soon after the Constitution became effective was it added?

The Bill of Rights consists of the first ten amendments protecting basic rights held by Americans; it was added less than three years after the Constitution became effective.

Why was the Bill of Rights added to the Constitution, and who led the effort?

The anti-Federalists refused to ratify the Constitution without a guaranteed Bill of Rights, and Thomas Jefferson led the effort to add them to secure their support.

How are civil rights defined?

Civil rights are positive acts of government that seek to make constitutional guarantees a reality for all people by providing equal protections.

What are key examples of civil rights protections against discrimination?

Prohibitions of discrimination on the basis of race, sex, ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation.

What major areas of discrimination were outlawed by the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

It outlawed discrimination in voting rights, barred segregation in public school accommodations, banned discrimination in federally funded programs, and forbade employers and labor unions from discriminating in job-related matters based on race, color, religion, sex, physical disability, or age.

What was the decision and effect of Brown v. Board of Education (1954)?

The Supreme Court reversed Plessy v. Ferguson, holding that 'separate but equal' was unconstitutional and striking down laws in four states that required or allowed segregated educational facilities.

What primary legal protections are guaranteed by the 5th Amendment?

The right to a grand jury in criminal cases, protection against self-incrimination, protection from double jeopardy, the guarantee of due process of law before denying life, liberty, or property, and just compensation when private property is taken for public use.

What is the primary focus of the 14th Amendment, and what is its most commonly used phrase?

It addresses aspects of citizenship and citizen rights, with its most commonly used phrase being 'equal protection of the laws'.

What is the process of incorporation?

The combination or merger of most guarantees in the Bill of Rights into the 14th Amendment, through which the Supreme Court applies them to states via the due process clause.

What does the 5th Amendment protection against double jeopardy establish?

Once an individual has been charged for a crime, he or she cannot be tried again for that same crime.

What does due process of law require of the government?

The government must act fairly and in accord with established rules and laws in all that it does, treating all citizens fairly and applying equal protection under the law.

What is a grand jury, and how does it operate in federal criminal cases?

It is a formal device to accuse someone of a serious crime consisting of 16 to 23 persons, where at least 12 members must vote to formally charge the individual; it is not a trial.

How does the principle of 'innocent till proven guilty' apply to the protection against self-incrimination?

The burden of proof is entirely on the prosecution, meaning the defendant does not have to testify or be a witness against himself or herself.

What did the 15th Amendment accomplish, and when was it passed?

Passed in 1870, it provided the right to vote to people of color by prohibiting the denial of voting rights based on race, color, or previous enslavement.

What did the 19th Amendment establish, and when was it passed?

Passed in 1920, it gave women the right to vote.

What was banned by the 24th Amendment, and in what year was it passed?

Passed in 1964, it banned poll taxes as a condition of voter qualification.

What change did the 26th Amendment make to voting rights, and when was it passed?

Passed in 1971, it lowered the voting age to 18.