9 Civil Rights Legislation and Voting Rights

Civil Rights Legislation Overview

Civil Rights Act of 1964

  • Major legislation aimed at ending discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

  • Key sections:

    • Title VII: Outlaws discrimination in employment.

    • Prohibits unequal application of voter registration requirements.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

  • Passed shortly after the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

  • Focuses on ensuring equal voting rights, particularly for African Americans.

  • Federalism in Voting:

    • States and local governments set election laws (i.e., polling hours, voter registration deadlines).

    • The Voting Rights Act employs federal power to enforce voting rights.

Major Provisions of the Voting Rights Act

  1. Federal Oversight of Local Elections:

    • Federal government can replace local voting registrars where discrimination occurred.

    • Aimed at areas historically marked by discrimination.

    • Ensures fair voting practices.

  2. Federal Approval for Changes:

    • States and local governments must receive federal approval before making changes to voting laws in historically discriminatory areas.

    • This is to prevent new discriminatory practices from being implemented.

Suspension of Literacy Tests

  • Literacy tests used to control voter registration were suspended under the Voting Rights Act if their application had racial discriminatory purposes.

  • The act did not declare literacy tests unconstitutional when neutral; it merely suspended their use if discriminatory.

Bipartisan Support and Evolution of the Voting Rights Act

  • Initial Bipartisan Support:

    • The Voting Rights Act had bipartisan support upon its passage and during early renewals.

    • Renewals occurred periodically, with notable examples:

    • 2006 reauthorization signed by President Bush, indicating ongoing bipartisan support.

  • Shift Post-2006:

    • Bipartisan support began to decline.

    • Supreme Court decisions began to weaken the enforcement mechanisms established by the Act, leading to debates in Congress about its future.

    • By the 2010s, many provisions were no longer effective or enforced.

Poll Taxes

  • Poll taxes were used to restrict African American voting rights.

  • The 24th Amendment (ratified in 1964) eliminated poll taxes in federal elections, affirming that no payment should be required to vote.

School Segregation and Desegregation

  • Historical Context:

    • Following the Brown v. Board of Education case, desegregation efforts faced resistance, particularly in Northern and Southern school districts due to neighborhood segregation.

  • Swan v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education (1971):

    • Supreme Court upheld the legality of busing students to desegregate schools.

    • This decision impacted millions of students and demonstrated the judiciary's role in enforcing desegregation.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act

  • Title VII prohibits discrimination in employment based on:

    • Race

    • Color

    • Sex

    • Religion

    • National origin

  • Applies to both public and private employers with at least 15 employees.

    • Excludes smaller businesses (e.g., family-run businesses) from its jurisdiction.

Equal Employment Opportunity Regulations

  • Federal law sets minimum protection standards.

  • Businesses may choose to extend protections to additional groups, including age, disability, sexual orientation, etc.

Legal Standards for Discrimination Cases

  • Courts apply various scrutiny levels in discrimination cases:

    1. Strict Scrutiny:

    • Applies to laws concerning suspect classifications (race, color, fundamental rights).

    • Burden of proof lies with the government to justify the law as necessary.

    1. Intermediate Scrutiny:

    • Established through Craig v. Boren (1976).

    • Applies to sex-based laws; laws must serve important governmental objectives and be substantially related to achieving those objectives.

    1. Rational Basis:

    • General standard for most discrimination cases not involving suspect or quasi-suspect classifications.

    • The burden of proof is on the individual challenging the law.

Notable Cases in Discrimination Law Development

  1. Reed v. Reed (1971):

    • Idaho law preferring males over females for executor roles in wills deemed unconstitutional for being arbitrary and discriminatory.

    • The Court underscored the importance of equal protection under the law without arbitrary distinctions.

  2. Craig v. Boren (1976):

    • Gender-based discriminatory law concerning alcohol purchasing age led to the establishment of intermediate scrutiny standards for sex discrimination cases.

Implications of Scrutiny Levels

  • The classification into different scrutiny levels shapes how cases are judged and the protections afforded to various groups.

  • The ongoing evolution and debate illustrate civil rights as a dynamic and continuously contested space, impacting laws, policies, and individual rights across the governance spectrum.

Conclusion

  • Current discussions regarding civil rights legislation, especially around voting rights and employment discrimination, continue to evolve within the broader context of American political and social life.