CIVIL RIGHTS TEST

Civil Rights

Protections and treatments given to all U.S. Citizens by the government to ensure they receive equal treatment and no discrimination.

13th Amendment

Abolished slavery and indentured servitude, except as a punishment for a crime.

14th Amendment

Grants citizenship for all people born in the U.S. or naturalized, and guarantees equal protection under the law.

15th Amendment

Prohibits the government from denying a citizen the right to vote based on race, color, or previous servitude.

Jim Crow Laws

State and local laws that enforced racial segregation in the South from the late 1800s until the Civil Rights Movement.

Plessy v. Ferguson

Established the 'separate but equal' doctrine, which upheld racial segregation.

Brown v. Board of Education

Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson; ruled that segregation in public schools is unconstitutional.

De jure segregation

Legalized segregation, such as in Jim Crow laws.

De facto segregation

Segregation by fact, often due to social and economic factors like housing patterns.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Outlawed segregation and discrimination in public accommodations and employment.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

Banned literacy tests and poll taxes, making voting easier for African Americans.

Affirmative Action

Policies aimed at increasing representation of minorities in education and employment.

24th Amendment

Banned poll taxes.

Title IX

Bans gender discrimination in education and sports.

Civil Disobedience

Nonviolent protest against unjust laws.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Prohibits discrimination based on disability.

Suffrage

The right to vote.

19th Amendment

Granted the right to vote for women.

Seneca Falls Convention

First women's rights convention in the U.S.

Korematsu v. United States

Background

• After the attack on Pearl Harbor (1941), the U.S. government feared that Japanese Americans on the West Coast might be loyal to Japan.

• President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which authorized the forced relocation and internment of over 120,000 Japanese Americans, most of whom were U.S. citizens.

• Fred Korematsu, a Japanese-American citizen, refused to comply with the order and was arrested for staying in a “military zone” without reporting to an internment camp.

• He sued, arguing that his 5th Amendment (due process) and 14th Amendment (equal protection) rights were violated.

Ruling

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled against Korematsu, upholding the internment camps as constitutional.

The Court argued that national security concerns outweighed individual rights during wartime.

Justice Hugo Black, writing for the majority, stated that racial classifications are “suspect” but justified if there is a “pressing public necessity.”

The Court applied a form of strict scrutiny, but ultimately deferred to the government’s argument that Japanese Americans could pose a national security threat.

Grandfather Clause

Allowed people to vote only if their grandfather had been eligible to vote before the Civil War.

Literacy Test

Required voters to prove they could read and write before voting.

Poll Taxes

Charged a fee to vote, affecting poor African Americans.

U.S. v. Virginia

Struck down male-only admissions at the Virginia Military Institute, reinforcing gender equality.

University of California Regents v. Bakke

Racial quotas in college admissions are unconstitutional, but race can be a factor.

Obergefell v. Hodges

Legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.

Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg

Approved busing to promote school integration.

Shaw v. Reno

Ruled racial gerrymandering must be strictly scrutinized.

Baker v. Carr

Established 'one person, one vote,' ensuring equal representation.

Civil Rights Cases (1883)

Declared the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional, allowing private businesses to discriminate.

Loving v. Virginia

Struck down laws banning interracial marriage.

Dr. King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”

Argued for civil disobedience and nonviolent resistance to unjust laws.

NAACP

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, fights for African American rights.

a) The 15th Amendment and State Resistance

The 15th Amendment (1870) states that the right to vote cannot be denied based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It was designed to grant African American men the right to vote after the Civil War.

b) What were three measures taken by Southern states against it?

Southern states implemented voter suppression tactics to circumvent the 15th Amendment. Three key measures include:

Literacy Test: Required voters to prove they could read and write before voting. Since many formerly enslaved people had limited access to education, these tests were designed to prevent Black voters from passing.

Poll Taxes: Charged a fee to vote, which disproportionately affected poor African Americans who couldn’t afford to pay.

Grandfather Clause: Allowed people to vote only if their grandfather had been eligible to vote before the Civil War. Since most Black citizens’ ancestors were enslaved and ineligible to vote, this effectively disenfranchised them.

c) Explain one and why it worked

Let’s take literacy tests as an example.

Why it worked: Many Southern states designed literacy tests to be intentionally confusing and subjective. White election officials had the power to pass or fail applicants arbitrarily. Even highly educated Black individuals were often denied the right to vote, while illiterate white voters were sometimes given exemptions or easier tests.

Impact: Literacy tests, combined with poll taxes and intimidation tactics (like violence from groups like the KKK), drastically reduced Black voter turnout. In some Southern states, the percentage of Black men registered to vote dropped to nearly zero until the Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed these practices