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Dred Scott v Sandford
Dred Scott, a slave from Missouri, filed a lawsuit in a Missouri court for his freedom upon returning to the state. The question was, "Was Dred Scott free or a slave?", was used when the Taney Court settled on a 7-2 decision. The majority ruled that “a negro, whose ancestors were imported into [the U.S.], and sold as slaves," could not be considered American citizens due to being considered property under the 5th amendment. -
13th Amendment
This is the first of the 3 "Civil War Amendments". Its basic purpose was to formerly end slavery and servitude, even saying in the amendment: "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". The amendment does not protect against servitude in prisons, or those drafted/enlisted in the military. -
14th Amendment
The second of 3 "Civil War Amendments", this amendment's primary purpose was to grant citizenship to anyone who was born or naturalized in the United States. This allowed all slaves born in America to assume citizenship, which has proved to be highly controversial with immigrants today. The 14th amendment also established the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, which have made it possible for SCOTUS to apply the Bill of Rights and other recent amendments to the states. -
15th Amendment
The final of 3 "Civil War Amendments", this amendment prevented the government from denying a citizen the right to vote based on race. This would have been a monumental movement if it weren't for the various methods the majority took to prevent blacks from voting. They used poll taxes and literacy tests, making questions impossible to answer; for Whites who were illiterate or poor, the grandfather clause was used to give them their voting rights. Blacks did not see the pools until much later. -
Plessy v Ferguson
Homer Plessy, a man who was only 1/8 black, was arrested after refusing to leave a whites-only Louisiana train car. The case went to the Supreme Court, and the question: "Does the Separate Car Act violate the Fourteenth Amendment" was used. The Fuller Court settled on a 7-1 decision in favor of Ferguson; the majority opinion was that the state law was constitutional. This enforced the "Equal but Separate" standard, where segregation was allowed as long as both sides had equal accommodations. -
19th Amendment
The 19th amendment was a step forward for gender equality; this legally guaranteed women the right to vote, although at the time it only included Caucasian women. Many minority women did not gain the right to vote until much later, specifically after the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This amendment took an unimaginable amount of fighting, struggling, and protesting to be considered and eventually passed. Interestingly enough, New York had established women's suffrage rights in 1917. -
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Voter ID Laws
The first voter ID law was established in 1950, when South Carolina became the first state to require identification at polls. The next state to follow was Hawaii in 1970, quickly followed by Texas in 1971. Three other states followed in suit, and by 1980 five states had some form of voter ID law. The rest of the states followed suit, with a few states being exceptions, Pennsylvania's pending voter ID law was struck down on January 17th, 2014, being declared unconstitutional for state voters. -
Brown v Board of Education
This case was the result of several smaller cases rising across the US, all arguing the same issue: segregation of public schools on the basis of race. The question, "Does the segregation of public education based solely on race violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment", was posed to the Warren Court. They decided unanimously that segregation is indeed in violation of the 14th amendment, but the decision took a few years to enforce through legislation and brute force. -
24th Amendment
The key purpose of this amendment was to remove the ability to tax voting polls from the federal and state governments. This would help kick start the Civil Rights movement by allowing poor African Americans to vote. This would set a new precedent, overturning Breedlove v Suttles (a case that upheld a Georgia poll tax) in a sense. Of course, Voter ID Laws can still prevent some from voting, but this amendment was a small-but-mighty move towards equal suffrage rights. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Known legally as Public Law 88-352 (78 Stat. 241), this act opened up the gate for minorities to make advancements towards equality. It forbade any form of discrimination on the basis of sex, color, national origin, race or religion. Furthermore, this act extended to discrimination in hiring, promoting, and firing in the workplace. It helped stomp out the dying flame of desegregation by making it essentially illegal. This act helped enforce the decision made in Brown v Board of Education. -
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Known formally as Public Law 81-100, this act eliminated all forms of discrimination related to voting polls. It primarily applied to the southern states, which had kept these unlawful actions in practice ever since the end of the Civil War. Along with banning literacy tests, it also put into place appointments for federal examiners. People who held this title would register qualified citizens to vote, rather than state-level examiners who had been enforcing literacy test for years. -
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Affirmative Action
President Lyndon B. Johnson issued Executive Order 11246, which "prohibit[ed] employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, and national origin by those organizations receiving federal contracts and subcontracts" and was changed to include sex a year later. In simpler terms, it prevents colleges and workplaces from overlooking minorities and enforces equal treatment. As of 2023, the Supreme Court decided in a 6-3 decision that race-conscious affirmative action is unconstitutional. -
Equal Rights Amendment
This amendment, unlike others in this timeline, was never accepted to become a part of the Constitution. It was designed to prohibit sexual discrimination under the law, which would allow women to finally be on an equal level with men. It failed to meet the necessary number of state ratifications by the deadline. Virginia signed a ratification in 2020, however, which pushed the amendment to have the 38 necessary states. It is still pending, however, and no action has been taken since. -
Title IX
Known legally as Public Law No. 92-318, this legislation prohibits sex-based discrimination in all educational programs/activities that receive federal financial assistance. Schools are not allowed to deny any man or woman the same quality of equipment, as well as the general participation in sports. Title IX is a major source of controversy, beginning with the NCAA complaining that girls' sports would negatively bring down boys' sports if they had equal funding. These arguments continue today. -
Regents of the University of California v Bakke
Allan Bakke, a white man who had applied twice to the University of California's medical school, was denied acceptance due to minority-reserved spots despite having higher qualifications than all of them. The question, "Did the University of California violate the Equal Protection Clause and the Civil Rights Act?", was proposed. In varying opinions, the Burger Court agreed with Bakke, but set a tighter precedent for affirmative action. It minimized white opposition, but expanded minority rights. -
Bowers v Hardwick
Michael Hardwick was engaging in homosexual sodomy- in his own home- when a police officer observed the act. He was charged under a law that prohibited sodomy, and through a difficult process, his case made it to the Supreme Court. The question, "Does the Constitution grant a fundamental right to homosexual sodomy", was presented for the case. In a 5-4 decision, the Burger Court decided that the Constitution did NOT protect acts of sodomy. This meant that state laws surrounding this held strong. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
Known formally as Public Law 101-336, this law prohibited discrimination against citizens who had disabilities. It also provides accommodations for employees that fall under the ADA, as well as requiring public places to have accessibility accommodations such as wheelchair ramps. The ADA has become a center of controversy around the fact that both mental and physical disabilities are covered under the act. Some have started to lie and claim mental disability because it is not as easily proven. -
Shelby County v Holder
Shelby County, Arizona, filed a lawsuit in district court stating that Section 5 under Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act (official authorization needed for election law changes) were unconstitutional and prevented the county from carrying out their necessary duties. The question, "Does the renewal of Section 4 exceed Congress' authority and violate the 10th amendment?". In a 5-4 decision, the Roberts Court decided that yes, Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional. -
Obergefell v Hodges
This case was brought upon several same-sex couples challenging bans on state bans preventing same-sex marriage. They argued that it violated the clauses present in the 14th amendment, and some even claimed the Civil Rights Act. The argument inevitably made it to the Supreme Court, where the question, "Does the 14th amendment require states to license marriages and respect other state-issued licenses?" In a 5-4 decision made by the Roberts Court, they answered yes to both questions.