Civil liberties: Basic rights and freedoms guaranteed to individuals, protecting them from government overreach.
Civil rights: Protections against discrimination, ensuring equal treatment under the law.
Bill of Rights (Selected Amendments)
First Amendment: Freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition.
Second Amendment: Right to bear arms for a well-regulated militia.
Fourth Amendment: Protection against unreasonable searches and seizures; requires probable cause for warrants.
Fifth Amendment: Guarantees due process, protects against self-incrimination (pleading the fifth), and double jeopardy.
Sixth Amendment: Right to a speedy and public trial, the right to counsel, and the right to confront witnesses.
Fourteenth Amendment
Ratified in 1868, following the Civil War, to ensure the rights of formerly enslaved people.
Two key clauses:
Due Process Clause: Prohibits states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.
Equal Protection Clause: Requires states to provide equal protection under the law to all people within their jurisdiction.
Civil Rights Act of 1964 & Voting Rights Act of 1965
Civil Rights Act of 1964: Landmark legislation outlawing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
Addressed discrimination in:
Voter registration.
Schools.
The workplace.
Public accommodations.
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Prohibits racial discrimination in voting.
Addressed:
Literacy tests.
Poll taxes.
Other discriminatory practices.
Nineteenth Amendment, Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), and Title IX
Nineteenth Amendment (1920): Granted women the right to vote.
Equal Rights Amendment (ERA):
Proposed amendment designed to guarantee equal rights for women.
Aimed to:
End legal distinctions between men and women in matters of divorce, property, employment, and other areas.
Never ratified.
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972: Prohibits sex-based discrimination in any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
Key impact: Athletics and educational opportunities.
Required Court Cases
Roe v. Wade (1973): Established a woman's right to an abortion, based on the right to privacy under the Fourteenth Amendment.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978):
Addressed affirmative action in college admissions.
Ruled that while affirmative action is permissible, quota systems are not.
Affirmative Action
Policies designed to address past and present discrimination by providing advantages to underrepresented groups in education and employment.
Application of Doctrine
Strict Scrutiny: A standard of judicial review used when a law infringes on fundamental rights or involves suspect classifications (e.g., race).
Requires the law to be narrowly tailored to serve a compelling government interest.
Selective Incorporation: The process by which the Supreme Court has applied the Bill of Rights to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause.
Stare Decisis: The legal principle of following precedents established in previous court decisions.
Literalism: The interpreter of the law must only consider the plain, obvious meaning of the text.
The "Wall of Separation" Doctrine
Principle derived from Thomas Jefferson's interpretation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
Calls for a clear division between church and state, preventing government from endorsing or favoring any particular religion.
Political Ideologies
A set of beliefs and ideas that shape a person's views on politics, government, and society.
Voter Trends
Patterns in how different groups of people vote, based on factors such as:
Age.
Gender.
Race.
Socioeconomic status.
Education.
Geographic location.
Polling
Benchmark Polls: Initial polls conducted to establish a baseline of public opinion at the beginning of a campaign.
Tracking Polls: Ongoing polls that track changes in public opinion over time.
Exit Polls: Polls conducted immediately after voters exit the polling places, used to predict election results and understand voter behavior.
Constitutional Clauses
Establishment Clause: Prohibits the government from establishing a religion.
Interstate Commerce Clause: Grants Congress the power to regulate commerce among the states.
The Supremacy Clause: Establishes that the Constitution and federal laws are the supreme law of the land.
Free Exercise Clause: Protects individuals' right to practice their religion freely.