AP U.S. Government Chapter 5

civil rights

policies designed to protect people against arbitrary or discriminating treatment by government officials or individuals

Define the term "affirmative action"

policies requiring special efforts on behalf of disadvantaged groups

affirmative action

policy designed to give special attention to or compensatory treatment for members of some previously disadvantaged group

comparable worth

the issue raised when women who hold traditionally female jobs are paid less than men for working at jobs requiring comparable skill

What is meant by "comparable worth"?

traditional women's jobs often pay much less than men's jobs that demand comparable skill

14th Amendment

..., Declares that all persons born in the U.S. are citizens and are guaranteed equal protection of the laws

List four cases in which the Supreme Court seems to oppose affirmative action

1. 2. 3. 4.

List four cases in which the Supreme Court seems to support affirmative action

1. 2. 3. 4.

How has Congress attempted to end sex discrimination in the area of employment?

1. Civil Rights Act of 1964 banned sex discrimination in employment 2. In 1972, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was given the power to sue employers suspected of illegal discrimination

List and explain four ways in which the southern states denied African Americans the right to vote.

1. Grandfather clauses exempted persons whose grandfathers were eligible to vote in 1860 from taking literacy tests in order to vote; the exemption obviously did not apply to grandchildren of slaves (declared unconstitutional in Guinn v. U.S., 1915) 2. Poll taxes were small taxes levied on the right to vote; the taxes often fell due at a time of year when poor sharecroppers had the least amount of cash available. 3. White primaries permitted political parties in the heavily Democratic South to exclude Blacks from primary elections on the pretext that political parties (and primaries) were private and not public institutions; this device deprived Blacks of a voice in the primaries, where the real contest occurred (declared unconstitutional in Smith v. Allwright 1944) 4. Many areas in the South employed voter registration tests (sometimes called voter literacy tests) in a discriminatory manner; some of the tests checked for an understanding of the Constitution.

How has the Supreme Court dealt with the issue of sexual harassment?

1. Harris v. Forklift Systems (1993), Supreme Court held that no single factor is required to win a sexual harrassment case under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. 2. Faragher v. City of Boca Raton (1998), Supreme Court stated that employers can be held liable for even those harassing acts of supervisory employees that violate clear policies and of which top management has no knowledge.

Explain the Supreme Court's three standards for classifications under the equal protection clause and give an example of each.

1. Most classifications that are reasonable (that bear a rational relationship to some legitimate government purpose) are constitutional. 2. Racial and ethnic classifications are inherently suspect: they are presumed to be invalid and are upheld only if they serve a "compelling public interest" that cannot be accomplished in some other way. 3. Classifications based on gender fit somewhere between reasonable and inherently suspect: gender classifications must bear a substantial relationship to an important legislative purpose (and is sometimes called "medium scrutiny").

List four minority groups that have faced discrimination similar to that experienced by African Americans

1. Native Americans 2. Hispanic Americans 3. Asian Americans. 4. Arab Americans and Muslims

In what two ways are women legally treated differently in the military?

1. Only men must register for the draft when they turn 18 (upheld in Rostker v. Goldberg, 1981) 2. Statues and regulations prohibit women from serving in combat

Explain the two major conceptions of equality

1. Philosophically, the struggle for equality involves defining the term; constitutionally, it involves interpreting laws; politically, it often involves power. 2. American society does not emphasize equal results or equal rewards--a belief in equal rights has often ed to a belief in equality of opportunity.

What are the main provisions of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Americans with Disestablishes Act of 1990?

1. added disabled people to the list of Americans protected from discrimination 2. requires employers and public facilities to provide "reasonable accommodations," and prohibits employment discrimination against the disabled

List the six major provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

1. made racial discrimination illegal in hotels, restaurants, and other places of public accommodation 2. forbade discrminiation in employment on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, or gender 3. created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to monitor and enforce protections against job discrimination 4. provided for withholding federal grants from state and local governments and other institutions that practiced racial discrimination 5. strengthened voting rights legislation 6. authorized the U.S. Justice Department to initiate lawsuits to desegregate public schools and facilities

What are the three key types of inequality in America?

1. racial discrimination 2. gender discrimination 3. discrimination based on age, disability, sexual orientation, and other factors

What was the Equal Rights Amendment?

A constitutional amendment originally introduced in Congress in 1923 and passed by Congress in 1972, stating that "equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex." Despite public support, the amendment failed to acquire the necessary support from 3/4 of the state legislatures.

Equal Rights Amendment

A constitutional amendment originally introduced in Congress in 1923 and passed by Congress in 1972, stating that "equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex." Despite public support, the amendment failed to acquire the necessary support from three-fourths of the state legislatures.

Voting Rights Act of 1965

A law designed to help end formal and informal barriers to African American suffrage. Under the law, hundreds of thousands of African Americans were registered and the number of African American elected officials increased dramatically.

13th Amendment

Abolished slavery in the United States

19th Amendment

Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1920) extended the right to vote to women in federal or state elections.

24th Amendment

Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1964) eliminated the poll tax as a prerequisite to vote in national elections.

What is the difference between de jure segregation and de facto segregation?

During the period leading up to the civil rights movement, segregation was legally required in the South (de jure) and sanctioned in the North (de facto)

In what ways are the elderly discriminated against in American society?

Employers refuse to hire over certain age, retirement used to me compulsar, graduate and professional schools reject applicants

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Law that made racial discrimination against any group in hotels, motels, and restaurants illegal and forbade many forms of job discrimination

What was the impact of the Voting Rights Act of 1965?

Produced a major increased in the number of African Americans registered to vote in the southern states, and in the number of African Americans who held public office

poll taxes

Small taxes levied on the right to vote that often fell due at a time of year when poor African-American sharecroppers had the least cash on hand. This method was used by most Southern states to exclude African Americans from voting. Poll taxes were declared void by the Twenty-fourth Amendment in 1964.

Regents of the University of California v. Blake (1978)

Supreme Court decision holding that a state university could not admit less qualified individuals solely because of their race

Adarand Constructors v. Pena (1995)

Supreme Court decision holding that federal programs that classify people by race, even for an ostensibly benign purpose such as expanding opportunities for minorities, should be presumed to be unconstitutional

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Supreme Court decision holding that school segregation was inherently unconstitutional because it violated the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection. This case marked the end of legal segregation in U.S.

Scott v. Sandford (1857)

Supreme Court decision ruling that a slave who had escaped to a free state enjoyed no rights as a citizen and that Congress had no authority to ban slavery in the territories

Hernandez v. Texas (1954)

Supreme Court decision that extended protection against discrimination to Hispanics

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

Supreme Court decision that provided a constitutional justification for segregation by ruling that a Louisiana law requiring "equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races" was unconstitutional

Korematsu v. United States (1944)

Supreme Court decision that upheld as constitutional the internment of more than 100,000 Americans of Japanese descent in encampments during World War II

Craig v. Boren (1976)

Supreme Court established the "medium scrutiny" standard for determining gender discrimination

Reed v. Reed (1971)

The Landmark case in which the Supreme Court for the first time upheld a claim of gender discrimination

What is the only mention of the idea in equality in the Constitution?

The only place in which the idea of equality clearly appears in the Constitution is in the Fourteenth Amendment, which prohibits the states from denying "equal protection of the laws" to any person.

How do civil rights laws increase the scope and power of government?

They tell individuals and institutions that there are things they must do and other things they cannot do.

equal protection of the laws

part of 14th Amendment emphasizing laws must provide equivalent "protection" to all people

15th Amendment

constitutional amendment adopted in 1870 to extend suffrage to African Americans

Why might gays and lesbians face the toughest battle for equality?

homophobia has many causes; some being very powerful. Some religious groups condemn homosexuality. Such attitudes continue to characterize a large segment of the american public despite some changes over the past few years

How does equality threaten liberty?

in situations where the majority rule wants to deprive the minority of its rights

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA)

law passed in 1990 that requires employers and public facilities to make "reasonable accommodations" for people with disabilities and prohibits discrimination against these individuals in employment

Explain the policy of "protectionism"

laws protecting women from the burdens of overtime work, easy hours on the job, and heavy lifting

suffrage

legal right to vote, extended to African Americans by 15th Amendment, to women by 19th Amendment, and to people over 18 by 26th Amendment

white primary

one of means used to discourage African American voting that permitted political parties in the heavily Democratic South to exclude African Americans from primary elections, thus depriving them of a vote in the real contests. Supreme Court decided unconstitutional in 1944