Civil Liberties
The First Amendment
Civil Liberties: limits on government that allow people to freely exercise their rights.
Civil Rights: freedom you have to participate in public life
Selective Incorporation: states can’t enact laws
The First Amendment: Freedom of Speech
Speech
Religion
the Press
Expression
Peaceful Assembly
Schench v. the US (1919)
Established the Clear and Present danger test (which states that speech can be curbed.)
Supreme Court established that a person’s rights aren’t absolute
Courts show they’re willing to restrict right in the interest of national security
Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969):
Brandenburg v. Ohio: establishes Imminent Lawless Action Test where speech can be limited if authorities can show it will incite criminal acts.
Tinker v. Des Moines:
Tinker v. Des Moines: symbolic speech where a school was upset with students for wearing black armbands that protested the Vietnam war.
New York Times v. the US:
New York Times v. the US: freedom of the press. NYT tried to expose the Pentagon Papers because the government was lying.
Engle v. Vitale
This case focuses on freedom of religion.
School prayer case that violated the establishment clause: separation of church and state
Importance of the ruling:
prohibits the reciting of prayer in school
Reaffirmed in 2000 to include organized, student-led prayer at public football games.
Lemon v. Kurtzman
The case focuses on state funding for private religious schools to be used for non-religious purposes.
Free-Exercise Clause: the government can not interfere with the practice of religion.
The Lemon test says that a law:
must have a secular purpose
neither advance nor inhibit religion
not excessively entangle the government in religion.
The Second Amendment: Right to Bear Arms and Militias
Militias=National Guard
Right to Arms is highly controversial and definitions of the 2nd Amendment vary
D.C. v. Heller (2002): Is a DC ban on registering handguns and required use of a trigger lock unconstitutional? Yes. No handgun bans.
McDonald v. Chicago (2010): Does the Heller case apply to states? Yes, it does.
Penumbras & Emanations
Where does the right to privacy come from if it isn’t stated directly in the constitution?
Justice William O. Douglas explained that the Bill of Rights “have penumbras…that give them life and substance” and other amendments have emanations that point to a right to privacy.
3rd amendment -no quartering implies privacy in homes
1st amendment- implies freedom of thought and choice
9th amendment- implies other rights exist beyond those mentioned in the Constitution.
The Right to Privacy
Implied by the 9th amendment
Two areas the SC has ruled on:
Abortions
Roe v. Wade- SC views abortion as a privacy issue and blocks state laws banning the practice. (sets “pro-life/pro-choice” debate)
Planned Parenthood v. Casey: Upholds right to abortion, BUT allows states to consider “viability.” No abortions after 2nd trimester.
Two Areas the SC has ruled on:
Sexual relations amongst consenting adults:
Lawrence v. Texas (2003): SC strikes down “sodomy” laws in Texas affecting homosexuals.
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965): court strikes down state laws prohibiting the use of birth control, even for married couples
4th through 8th provide Procedural Due Process
Procedural Due Process: the steps that the government must follow before punishing an offense.
At first, it only applied to the Federal Government
The 1960s required by States
The 4th Amendment
Provides protection against speculative and arbitrary police actions
Whren v. United States (1996): Person pulled over on a traffic stop is found to have drugs. The court found the search legal as it was in the course of a proper stop.
Probable Cause: exists when an officer has pulled you over for a violation and/or evidence is in plain sight.
Exclusionary Rule
Exclusionary Rule: excludes evidence gathered illegally and any “fruit of the poisonous tree”
More exceptions to getting evidence in
Mapp v. Ohio (1996)
SC declared that all evidence obtained by illegal searches and seizures in violation of the 4th amendment is inadmissible in court.
5th Amendment: Self-Incrimination
Self-incrimination: when you implicate yourself in a crime, usually during interrogation
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
The 5th amendment requires that law enforcement advise suspects of their right to remain silent and to obtain an attorney during interrogations while in police custody.
6th Amendment: Right to Legal Counsel
Powell v. Alabama (1932): SC says the trials denied due process. Defendants were not given reasonable time and opportunity to secure counsel in their defense.
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963): SC believes that all (felony) defendants have a right to an attorney even if they can not afford one.
The 14th Amendment: Equal Protection
Equal-Protection Clause: States can’t deny any person equal protection under the law.
The court uses 3 categories for determining if a law violates the 14th amendment.
Suspect Categories: any law involving race, ethnicity, or religion
Strict Scrutiny: government much show a strong reason for targeting them
Quasi-Suspect Categories: any law involving sex-based categories
Intermediate Scrutiny: government must show a compelling interest in the law
Nonsuspect Categories: Any law based on age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or physical handicap much show a rational connection to a legitimate government purpose.
The Clash Over Slavery
Abolition: the 19th-century movement to end slavery
Missouri Compromise: limited slavery to southern lands west of the Mississippi River
Dredd Schott vs. Sandford: SC decision that stated blacks could not be citizens
The Reconstruction Amendments
Reconstruction: failed attempt to rebuild the South and establish racial equality after the Civil War
13th: ends slavery
14th: grants citizenship and equal protection under the law
15th: grants voting rights to black males
Black Codes: laws restricting the rights of blacks
Jim Crow Laws: created a system of segregation in the South that would last until 1965
Plessy v. Ferguson: SC case that legalized the concept of “separate but equal” and Jum Crowism
de jure discrimination: discrimination established by law…like Jim Crow laws
de facto discrimination: a subtle form of discrimination that exists without a legal basis
Brown v. Board of Education (1954): marked the beginning of the end of the “Separate but equal” era that started with Plessy v. Ferguson
The Civil Rights Movement
A Social Movement: organizations to fight for civil rights and desegregation.
Nonviolent protests: protests mean to state what’s wanted to be said without violence (sit-ins, marches, “rides”)
Equal Access- The Civil Rights Acts of 1964
Regardless of sex, religion, race, or ethnicity, states/federal governments must provide equal access to:
Public Establishments
Hiring and Jobs
Housing
Some Exceptions do exist:
Small businesses/apartments
Parochial Schools in hiring
Equal Ballots- The Voting Rights Act of 1965
Voting is essential to citizenship, yet denied to so many for so long
Unconstitutional Voting practices:
Grandfather Clause (1915)
Literacy Tests and Poll Taxes
All White Primaries (1944)
The 24th Amendment: Outlaws poll taxes (for voting)
Voting Rights Act (1965): Prohibited Literacy Tests
States that had restrictive laws would have to have “pre-clearance” from the federal government to change their voting laws. Struck down with Selby County v. Holder.
Striving for Equality of Results
Affirmative Action (Employment): Programs designed to ensure groups have full and equal opportunities
Ensures applicants are treated fairly
White Males not overly preferred
Can be applied in a limited and sensible manner, used for diversity
Mandatory Busing: used to diversify and end segregation
Gender Equality
Laws of coverture: laws that stated a woman’s political rights and duties operated through her husband
The women’s suffrage movement started at the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention
Passage of the 19th Amendment happens in 1920
The CRA of 1964 bars discrimination based on “race, color, religion, sex, and national origin
Recent issues: sexual harassment, equal pay for equal work, and reproductive rights.
Civil Liberties
The First Amendment
Civil Liberties: limits on government that allow people to freely exercise their rights.
Civil Rights: freedom you have to participate in public life
Selective Incorporation: states can’t enact laws
The First Amendment: Freedom of Speech
Speech
Religion
the Press
Expression
Peaceful Assembly
Schench v. the US (1919)
Established the Clear and Present danger test (which states that speech can be curbed.)
Supreme Court established that a person’s rights aren’t absolute
Courts show they’re willing to restrict right in the interest of national security
Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969):
Brandenburg v. Ohio: establishes Imminent Lawless Action Test where speech can be limited if authorities can show it will incite criminal acts.
Tinker v. Des Moines:
Tinker v. Des Moines: symbolic speech where a school was upset with students for wearing black armbands that protested the Vietnam war.
New York Times v. the US:
New York Times v. the US: freedom of the press. NYT tried to expose the Pentagon Papers because the government was lying.
Engle v. Vitale
This case focuses on freedom of religion.
School prayer case that violated the establishment clause: separation of church and state
Importance of the ruling:
prohibits the reciting of prayer in school
Reaffirmed in 2000 to include organized, student-led prayer at public football games.
Lemon v. Kurtzman
The case focuses on state funding for private religious schools to be used for non-religious purposes.
Free-Exercise Clause: the government can not interfere with the practice of religion.
The Lemon test says that a law:
must have a secular purpose
neither advance nor inhibit religion
not excessively entangle the government in religion.
The Second Amendment: Right to Bear Arms and Militias
Militias=National Guard
Right to Arms is highly controversial and definitions of the 2nd Amendment vary
D.C. v. Heller (2002): Is a DC ban on registering handguns and required use of a trigger lock unconstitutional? Yes. No handgun bans.
McDonald v. Chicago (2010): Does the Heller case apply to states? Yes, it does.
Penumbras & Emanations
Where does the right to privacy come from if it isn’t stated directly in the constitution?
Justice William O. Douglas explained that the Bill of Rights “have penumbras…that give them life and substance” and other amendments have emanations that point to a right to privacy.
3rd amendment -no quartering implies privacy in homes
1st amendment- implies freedom of thought and choice
9th amendment- implies other rights exist beyond those mentioned in the Constitution.
The Right to Privacy
Implied by the 9th amendment
Two areas the SC has ruled on:
Abortions
Roe v. Wade- SC views abortion as a privacy issue and blocks state laws banning the practice. (sets “pro-life/pro-choice” debate)
Planned Parenthood v. Casey: Upholds right to abortion, BUT allows states to consider “viability.” No abortions after 2nd trimester.
Two Areas the SC has ruled on:
Sexual relations amongst consenting adults:
Lawrence v. Texas (2003): SC strikes down “sodomy” laws in Texas affecting homosexuals.
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965): court strikes down state laws prohibiting the use of birth control, even for married couples
4th through 8th provide Procedural Due Process
Procedural Due Process: the steps that the government must follow before punishing an offense.
At first, it only applied to the Federal Government
The 1960s required by States
The 4th Amendment
Provides protection against speculative and arbitrary police actions
Whren v. United States (1996): Person pulled over on a traffic stop is found to have drugs. The court found the search legal as it was in the course of a proper stop.
Probable Cause: exists when an officer has pulled you over for a violation and/or evidence is in plain sight.
Exclusionary Rule
Exclusionary Rule: excludes evidence gathered illegally and any “fruit of the poisonous tree”
More exceptions to getting evidence in
Mapp v. Ohio (1996)
SC declared that all evidence obtained by illegal searches and seizures in violation of the 4th amendment is inadmissible in court.
5th Amendment: Self-Incrimination
Self-incrimination: when you implicate yourself in a crime, usually during interrogation
Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
The 5th amendment requires that law enforcement advise suspects of their right to remain silent and to obtain an attorney during interrogations while in police custody.
6th Amendment: Right to Legal Counsel
Powell v. Alabama (1932): SC says the trials denied due process. Defendants were not given reasonable time and opportunity to secure counsel in their defense.
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963): SC believes that all (felony) defendants have a right to an attorney even if they can not afford one.
The 14th Amendment: Equal Protection
Equal-Protection Clause: States can’t deny any person equal protection under the law.
The court uses 3 categories for determining if a law violates the 14th amendment.
Suspect Categories: any law involving race, ethnicity, or religion
Strict Scrutiny: government much show a strong reason for targeting them
Quasi-Suspect Categories: any law involving sex-based categories
Intermediate Scrutiny: government must show a compelling interest in the law
Nonsuspect Categories: Any law based on age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or physical handicap much show a rational connection to a legitimate government purpose.
The Clash Over Slavery
Abolition: the 19th-century movement to end slavery
Missouri Compromise: limited slavery to southern lands west of the Mississippi River
Dredd Schott vs. Sandford: SC decision that stated blacks could not be citizens
The Reconstruction Amendments
Reconstruction: failed attempt to rebuild the South and establish racial equality after the Civil War
13th: ends slavery
14th: grants citizenship and equal protection under the law
15th: grants voting rights to black males
Black Codes: laws restricting the rights of blacks
Jim Crow Laws: created a system of segregation in the South that would last until 1965
Plessy v. Ferguson: SC case that legalized the concept of “separate but equal” and Jum Crowism
de jure discrimination: discrimination established by law…like Jim Crow laws
de facto discrimination: a subtle form of discrimination that exists without a legal basis
Brown v. Board of Education (1954): marked the beginning of the end of the “Separate but equal” era that started with Plessy v. Ferguson
The Civil Rights Movement
A Social Movement: organizations to fight for civil rights and desegregation.
Nonviolent protests: protests mean to state what’s wanted to be said without violence (sit-ins, marches, “rides”)
Equal Access- The Civil Rights Acts of 1964
Regardless of sex, religion, race, or ethnicity, states/federal governments must provide equal access to:
Public Establishments
Hiring and Jobs
Housing
Some Exceptions do exist:
Small businesses/apartments
Parochial Schools in hiring
Equal Ballots- The Voting Rights Act of 1965
Voting is essential to citizenship, yet denied to so many for so long
Unconstitutional Voting practices:
Grandfather Clause (1915)
Literacy Tests and Poll Taxes
All White Primaries (1944)
The 24th Amendment: Outlaws poll taxes (for voting)
Voting Rights Act (1965): Prohibited Literacy Tests
States that had restrictive laws would have to have “pre-clearance” from the federal government to change their voting laws. Struck down with Selby County v. Holder.
Striving for Equality of Results
Affirmative Action (Employment): Programs designed to ensure groups have full and equal opportunities
Ensures applicants are treated fairly
White Males not overly preferred
Can be applied in a limited and sensible manner, used for diversity
Mandatory Busing: used to diversify and end segregation
Gender Equality
Laws of coverture: laws that stated a woman’s political rights and duties operated through her husband
The women’s suffrage movement started at the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention
Passage of the 19th Amendment happens in 1920
The CRA of 1964 bars discrimination based on “race, color, religion, sex, and national origin
Recent issues: sexual harassment, equal pay for equal work, and reproductive rights.
