Chapter 5: Civil Liberties & Civil Rights - Quick Reference Notes

Civil Liberties vs Civil Rights

Civil Liberties are basic freedoms rooted in the Bill of Rights and the due process protections of the Fourteenth Amendment; they primarily restrict what the government can do to you. Civil Rights are protections from discrimination, rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection and due process clauses; they protect you from discrimination by both the government and individuals.

Incorporation and the Fourteenth Amendment

The first ten Amendments were originally applicable to the federal government; through the Fourteenth Amendment they were gradually incorporated against the states. Key incorporation milestones include cases like $Gitlow \text{ v. } New \text{ York (1925)}$ (freedom of speech), $Near \text{ v. } Minnesota (1931)$ (freedom of the press), $Mapp \text{ v. } Ohio (1961)$ (search and seizure), $Gideon \text{ v. } Wainwright (1963)$ (assistance of counsel), and $McDonald \text{ v. } Chicago (2010)$ (right to bear arms applies to states).

The First Amendment and Freedoms

The text: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." Core freedoms: Religion, Speech/Press, Assembly/Petition. Notable cases: $New \text{ York Times Co. v. } Sullivan (1964)$ (public officials as fair game) and $New \text{ York Times Co. v. United States (1971) (Pentagon Papers)}$; $Hague \text{ v. } CIO (1939)$ protected labor unions.

Right to Bear Arms (Second Amendment)

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." Rationale historically tied to independence and defense of liberty. Key rulings: $District \text{ of } Columbia \text{ v. } Heller (2008)$ (individual right to possess firearms for self-defense in the home, with limits); $McDonald \text{ v. } Chicago (2010)$ (Second Amendment applies to state and local governments via the Fourteenth Amendment).

Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments; Miranda

• Fourth: against unreasonable searches and seizures; warrants must be specific.

• Fifth: habeas corpus, right to remain silent, protection against double jeopardy.

• Sixth: speedy/public trial, trial by jury, right to an attorney.

• Eighth: no cruel or unusual punishments.

• $Miranda \text{ v. } Arizona (1966)$: police must inform you of your rights.

Other Amendments: Third; Ninth and Tenth; Fifth (Property Rights); Seventh

• Third: no quartering of soldiers in private homes.

• Fifth: protection of property rights among others.

• Seventh: jury trial in civil lawsuits.

• Ninth and Tenth: rights not explicitly listed are retained by the people.

Thirteenth to Fifteenth Amendments; Voting Rights

• Thirteenth ($13^{\text{th}}$): no slavery or involuntary servitude.

• Fourteenth ($14^{\text{th}}$): citizenship, equal protection, due process.

• Fifteenth ($15^{\text{th}}$): male suffrage.

• Nineteenth ($19^{\text{th}}$): women’s right to vote.

• Twenty-Fourth ($24^{\text{th}}$): prohibition of poll taxes.

• Voting Rights Act of $1965$: prohibits racial discrimination in voting.

• Twenty-Sixth ($26^{\text{th}}$): voting age lowered to 18.

Civil Rights Movement: Milestones

$Brown \text{ v. } Board \text{ of } Education (1954)$ declared that separate but equal has no place in public education. Rosa Parks’ refusal to surrender her seat (December 1, 1955) sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Civil Rights Act of $1957$ established Civil Rights Division in the Justice Department; desegregation in Little Rock in 1957 led to federal enforcement in 1958. The "I Have a Dream" march occurred on August 28, 1963. Civil Rights Act of $1964$ outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Selma to Montgomery March (March 7–25, 1965) protested voter suppression; Voting Rights Act of $1965$ followed. Thurgood Marshall was appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court in $1967$; Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in $1968$; Civil Rights Act of $1968$ followed.

Jim Crow and Disenfranchisement

Disenfranchisement of African Americans through poll taxes, literacy tests, and Grandfather Clauses; Jim Crow laws enforced white supremacy in the South. The Supreme Court allowed "Separate but Equal" under the doctrine associated with $Plessy \text{ v. } Ferguson (1896)$. The statement that the Constitution is color blind remained a dissenting view among justices like John Marshall Harlan in that era.

Civil Rights Legislation and Enforcement (1866–1875)

Civil Rights Act of $1866$ granted citizenship to all persons born in the United States; Civil Rights Act of $1871$ targeted racial violence by groups like the Ku Klux Klan; Civil Rights Act of $1875$ prohibited discrimination in public accommodations but was later found unconstitutional in 1883 as Congress could not regulate private conduct; none of these early acts were properly enforced for many years.

Executive Orders, Redress, and Apologies

Executive Order $9066$ (Feb 19, 1942) authorized internment of Japanese Americans; Endo \text{ v. } United \text{ States addressed habeas corpus concerns; Reagan Administration issued an apology in $1983$.

The Declaration of Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms (1775)

The document argues that Americans took up arms to defend life, liberty, and property, illustrating a foundational rationale for gun ownership and resistance to tyranny.