American Expierence Flashcards
Alexander Hamilton
American statesman and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He was an influential interpreter and promoter of the U.S. Constitution
Thomas Jefferson
American Founding Father who was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence
Checks and balances
counterbalancing influences by which an organization or system is regulated, typically those ensuring that political power is not concentrated in the hands of individuals or groups.
Constitution
a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed.
Articles of Comfederation
the first constitution of the United States, on November 15, 1777.
Federalists
an advocate or supporter of federalism.
Anti-Federalists
opposed the creation of a stronger U.S. federal government
Plessy vs Ferguson
U.S. Supreme Court case from 1896 that upheld the rights of states to pass laws allowing or even requiring racial segregation in public and private institutions
Brown vs the Board of Education
landmark United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional.
Sit-Ins
a form of protest in which demonstrators occupy a place, refusing to leave until their demands are met.
13th amendment
declared that “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
14th Amendment
citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws, and was proposed in response to issues related to former slaves following the American Civil War.
15th Amendment
prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen’s “race, color, or previous condition of servitude
19th Amendment
prohibits any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote on the basis of sex
Literacy Test
a test that determines the qualification of a voter based on his/her his ability to read and write or ability to read and understand any section of the State or Federal Constitution
Poll Tax
a tax levied on every adult, without reference to income or resources.
MLK JR
American civil rights activist and Baptist minister who first rose to prominence as leader of the Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott challenging segregated public transportation.
Malcom X
An African-American political leader of the twentieth century. A prominent Black Muslim
Patriot Act
Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001
Defense of Marriage Act
United States federal law that, prior to being ruled unconstitutional, defined marriage for federal purposes as the union of one man and one woman
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
commonly referred to as The Stimulus or The Recovery Act, was a stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009 and signed into law on February 17, 2009, by President Barack Obama.
African Slavery
the business or process of procuring, transporting, and selling slaves, especially black Africans to the New World prior to the mid-19th century. Origin of slave trade Expand
Middle Passage
the sea journey undertaken by slave ships from West Africa to the West Indies.
Slave Auction
a platform from which an auctioneer sells: the old courthouse where slaves were sold from the auction block.