Exam 1: Civil Rights Flashcards
What is civil rights?
Guarantees by the gov’t that it will treat people equally
what is discrimination?
the unjust treatment of different categories of people, especially on the basis of race, gender, and disability.
What were some of the 1st civil rights governing documents?
- declaration of independence
- 5th amendment
- 13th amendment
- 14th amendment
- 15th amendment
The Declaration of independence focused on
treating everyone equally
What governing document was the first to talk about equality?
The Declaration of Independence
what was a drawback of the declaration of independence
written for the quality of the white man
When was the first time we see civil rights in the constitution?
with the 5th amendment
What did the Fifth Amendment establish?
everyone has a right to DUE PROCESS
what is due process?
everyone has equal rights under the court system
what amendment established due process?
5th amendment
What did the 13th amendment establish>
officially abolished slavery
what did the 14th amendment establish?
created the equal protection clause
what was the equal protection clause?
stated that everyone has to be treated equally under the law
what amendment created the equal protection clause?
14th amendment
what did the 15th amendment establish?
gave African American males the right to vote
What court case created the separate but equal doctrine?
Plessy v. Ferguson
What was the separate but Equal Doctrine?
- stated that as long as minorities had the opportunity, they could have separate accommodation.
- created LEGAL SEGREGATION
What question was asked during the case of Plessy v. Ferguson?
Did the denial on the train, base on race, violate the 14th amendment?
What was the conclusion/ ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson?
- ruled that it was NOT a violation of the 14th amendment
- ruled CONSTITUTIONAL
- created the separate but equal doctrine –> created legal segregation
What is the background of plessy v. ferguson?
§ Occurred after the civil war, when the US already had the 13th, 14th, & 15th amendments. Homer Plessy jumped on a train and realized that the train was segregated by race. The minority side was in disrepair, but the white area of the train was bougie. So Plessy wanted to seat in the white area of the train, but was denied due to his race.
What question was asked during the Shelly v Kraemer case?
Did the restrictive covenants violate the 14th amendment?
What was the ruling of Shelly v. Kraemer?
- Ruled that there was NOT a violation of the 14th amendment
- Constitutional
What was stated in the conclusion of Shelly v. kraemer?
- the court stated that it was NOT a crime because these covenants were between private citizens.
- the court also stated that the 14th amendment ONLY PROTECTS YOU FROM GOV’T DISCRIMINATION, not from citizen discrimination
What was the background of Shelly v. Kraemer?
The Shelly family wanted to purchase a home in an all white neighborhood. The neighborhood has a Restrictive Covenants (H.O.A). This stated that homes could only be sold to whites.
What question was asked during the Brown v. Board of education case?
did the segregation of schools violate the 14th amendment
what was the Precedent for the Brown v. Board of Education?
Plessy v. Ferguson
What was the ruling for the Brown v. the Board of Education?
- ruled that there WAS A VIOLATION of the 14th amendment
- UNCONSTITUTIONAL
What where the results of the Brown v. Board of Education?
- Started to end segregation
- overturned Plessy v. Ferguson meaning that it got rid of the separate but equal doctrine
What case overturned plessy v. ferguson & got rid of the separate but equal doctrine?
Brown v. The Board of education
What was the background of brown v. the board of education?
Schools were segregated based on race. It become evident that the school were not equal. Books and supplies in minority schools were outdated and damaged. In addition, if a racial minority was zoned to a white school they could not attend that school.
What question was asked during the Loving v. Virginia case?
Are state laws that prohibit interracial marriage violating the 14th amendment
What was the ruling of Loving v. Virginia?
ruled that the laws DID VIOLATE the 14 amendment
UNCONSTITUTIONAL
What was a result of the Loving v. Virginia case?
LEGALIZATION OF INTERRACIAL MARRIAGE
What was the background of Loving v. Virginia?
Several states banned interracial marriage. The Loving’s lived in Virginia but it was illegal to get married there. Instead, the Loving’s go to D.C to get married. The State of Virginia gave them 2 options: 1. leave Virginia for 25 yrs or spend 1 yr. in prison.
What did the 1964 Civil Rights Act declare? (5)
- public places had to remove forms of racial discrimination
- discrimination by state governments & their agencies was ruled illegal
- gave the president the power to withhold federal education grants
- gave the attorney general power to initiate suits wherever there was a practice of discrimination
- outlaw job discrimination
What was the 1965 Voting Rights Act?
strengthened voting rights protecting by barring literacy & other test as a condition for voting setting criminal penalties for interference with efforts to vote
What did the 24th amendment establish?
abolished poll tax
what is gerrymandering?
the apportionment of voters in districts in such a way as to give unfair advantage to one racial or ethnic group or political party
(the practice of drawing the boundaries of electoral districts in a way that gives one political party an unfair advantage over its rivals or that dilutes the voting power of members of ethnic or linguistic minority groups)
What was the question asked during Elk v. Wilkins?
did the denial of voting violate the 14th amendment
What was the Ruling of Elk v. Wilkins?
The supreme court decided that they could not rule on the case because Mr. Elk isn’t a citizen, therefore he can’t have a supreme court case
What is the background of the Elk v. Wilkins case?
Mr. Elk was a Native American who was born on tribal land but he also viewed himself as an American. Everything that he did was Americanized. Then he went out to vote, but they denied him the right to vote because he was born on tribal land.
What was the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924?
The US granted citizenship to ALL native americans due to their service during WW1, in addition, this act also gave them a right to vote
T/F: the indian citizen act only gave Native American veterans citizenship.
FALSE
citizenship & a right to vote was given to ALL native americans
What was the Indian reorganization act of 1934?
- US tribes got to own their land
- the US govt allowed native american tribes to form their own individual governments.
(tribes could own their land & have their own govt.)
When did the indian reorganization act take full affect?
until the 1980s with total sovereignty
What was a drawback of total sovereignty for Native Americans in the 1980s?
The US could NO LONGER provide government assistance for native american tribes.
(tribes where unable to get welfare, education or policing, resulting in reservations becoming poor)
What did total sovereignty mean for native american tribes?
each tribe could have their own true government system. they where in essence “free” from the US government, but this came with drawbacks
What was the chinese exclusion act?
set strict immigration quotas on individuals of chinese decent
(determined how many chinese immigrants could come into the US)
What was the Ruling of United States v. Wong Kim Ark?
Ruled that under the 14th amendment anyone born in the united states, no matter their parents status, IS A US CITIZEN
(gave citizenship to children born in america by immigrant parents ) <3
What was the japanese exclusion act?
set strict immigration quotas for japan
Why was the chinese exclusion act created?
chinese immigrants where migrating to the US during the gold rush, this caused many americans to claim that the chinese were stealing there jobs thus resulting in the exclusion act
What was the ruling of Korematsu v. United States
the supreme court ruled that the interment camps DID NOT violate the 14th amendment (constitutional)
Why did the supreme court ruled Korematsu v. United states constitutional (meaning that the camps did not violate the 14th amendment)
the supreme court stated that since the US was in a time of emergency the camps were needed to keep the peace / protect the majority.
T/F: Korematsu v. United States is no longer a precedent in the US supreme court.
FALSE
Korematsu v. United States is STILL A PRECEDENT
what was the 1965 Immigration Act?
Got rid of the Exclusion Acts.
T/F Buck v. Bell has been overturned.
FALSE buck v. bell has never been overturned
What question was asked during the case of Buck v. Bell
Did the sterilization violate the 14th amendment?
What did the supreme court do in order to help with the ruling of Buck v. Bell?
The supreme court ask the govt./ states why don’t you think this was discriminatory behavior. The govt. responded that since they have a court date and the judge ruled to sterilize then it is not discriminatory. Also states stated that they are protecting future generations from any disabilities.
What was the ruling fro Buck v. Bell?
ruled that it DID NOT violate the 14th amendment
(constitutional)
what is the background of Buck v. Bell?
Several states had laws that allowed the government to sterilize individuals with disabilities without their permission. An individual would have a court date, and the court would decide if they were going to be sterilized. This happened to Kerry Buck
Who created the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990?
George H. W. Bush
What did the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 establish?
- it expanded the definition of disabilities. therefore giving more protection for those with a disability
- required equal hiring opportunities
- Required public places to be accessible. such as providing elevators & ramps
When is the Americans with Disabilities Act updated?
updated every year
What were two of the earliest Mexican American civil rights organizations
- League of United Latin American Citizens
- GI Forum
What was the ruling of Mendez v. Westminster
ruled that the segregation of mexican american students was unconstitutional
What happened as a result of Mendez v. Westminster
overturned school segregation in orange county, california
Why was Mendez v. westminster created?
to eliminate the segregation of mexican american students
What was the result of Hernandez v. Texas?
affirmed that Mexican Americans and all other nationalities were entitled to equal protection under the 14th amendment
Why was the DREAM act created?
was created to allow undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children to become permanent legal residents through military service or college attendance.
What did DACA state?
instruct immigration officials to take NO ACTION to deport law-abiding individuals who entered the United States illegally as children
what is an example of massive resistance?
when white people delayed the desegregation of schools
