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Dred Scott v. Sanford
Enslaved Americans were not protected by the federal government or courts since they were considered property not citizens. This case being labeled "one of the worst renderings" by the Supreme Court ended in a 7-2 decision to the majority. -
13th Amendment
President Lincoln is one of the most impactful presidents the U.S. has ever seen. In 1865 he signed the 13th amendment into law which abolished slavery unless it was a punishment for crime. -
14th Amendment
Arguably one of the most influential amendments for our nation stated "No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States." In today words, this amendment allowed all citizens of the U.S. to have equal rights and protection under the Constitution. -
15th Amendment
The 15th amendment states "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." In the Civil War era, African American rights were pushed and this allowed African Americans to vote. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
This case was more of a poor case on U.S. history. The ruling of this case ruled that the racial segregation laws were not unconstitutional as long as it was separate but equal. Many schools had issues with this since they were separate but not equal but that was up to the Supreme Court to rule and in early times an all white male court was very hard to persuade. -
19th Amendment
To further expand the freedom of the U.S. the 19th Amendment allowed women to vote. Sex is not allowed to be used when a citizen of the U.S. wants to vote. This was a big step in woman's rights and helped further their rights by setting a new standard. -
Brown v. Board of Education
Considered one of the most important cases in U.S. history, this Supreme Court case made racial segregation in schools illegal. This overruled the separate but equal and allowed Ruby Bridges in 1960 to be the first African American to attend a "white school". -
24th Amendment
This Amendment in simple terms eliminated poll taxes. It makes it so both Congress and the states cannot have poll taxes in the condition of voting in a federal election. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
In the times of discrimination towards African Americans in America, there were changes that had to of been enforced. In 1964 congress passed a law stating it is illegal to discriminate based off race color, religion or national origin. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Signed by President Lydon B Johnson, this act enforced the law that prior restrictions established after the Civil War on voting was illegal. This gets rid of the racial discrimination in voting. It abolished the literacy test and as long as someone is a citizen of the U.S. and fits the criteria of a voter, they can vote. -
Affirmative Action
Though President Kennedy was the first to bring up this idea in 1961, President Lyndon B Johnson in 1965 issued Executive Order 11246 which enforced the idea that race, color, religion and national origin was not allowed to be a factor in job hiring and other worldly things in America. It made it so there was not favoring in a certain group of people that would benefit them. -
Equal Rights Amendment
This Amendment was first brought in 1923 but later was officially established in 1972. This amendment made it so sex was not able to be used to discriminate. This Amendment took about 50 years to be established since in the early 1900's women vocalizing their opinion was not taken serious and the males of Congress did not listen. -
Title IX
Shortly after making racial discrimination in schools, only 10 years later the Supreme Court ruled that sex based discrimination is schools was illegal. This allowed women to be more active in their school community and opened them to more opportunities in sports. -
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
This case ruled that colleges were not allowed to use racial quotas when admitting students. Though it says that, it upheld affirmative action. Affirmative action makes it so race can be a factor when admitting but not the quotas. Bakke ended up getting into the University of California. -
Bowers v. Hardwick
A man named Michael Hardwick engaged in a consensual sexual act with another man and was charged with criminalized sodomy. In a 5-4 decision, they stated the Constitution does not protect the right of gay adults to engage in private, consensual sodomy but was later overturned due to the 14th amendment. -
Americans With DIsabilites Act
This act enforced that discrimination against Americans with disabilities was illegal. An example is a person in a wheelchair is not refused service in a restaurant just because they are in a wheelchair. This also helped those with disabilities not be discriminated when it comes to being employed. -
Shelby County v. Holder
This made another big change in voting rights in America. This case eliminated section 4b of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Section 4b was stated that it exceeded Congress's power to enforce Amendments 14 and 15. -
Obergefell v. Hodges
This case helped with LGBTQ rights. This case used the 14th amendment to require all states to license marriages between same-sex couples. This legalized same-sex marriage. Though it seems that everyone should be able to love who they want, this recent change has helped Americans feel more comfortable in their sexuality and brought more passion towards being who a person is. -
Voter ID Laws
These laws are laws that states can enforce that require identification before being able to vote. Over 30 states have enforced these laws in the past few years. These laws can shift votes in elections due to the restriction of people voting. Though it may seem simple, those without ID are losing a vote.