Crash Course Book: Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, and Top 30 Supreme Court Cases for AP Exam (Starts on Next Page)
CivilLiberties
INTRODUCTION
KEYTERMS
1.Civilliberties
Civil liberties are legal and constitutional rightsthatprotect individuals from arbitrary acts ofgovernment.Civil liberties include freedom of speech, freedomofreligion, andfreedomofthepress,aswellasguaranteesof a fairtrial.
2.Civilrights
Civilrightsarepoliciesdesignedtoprotectpeopleagainst arbitrary or discriminatory treatmentbygovernment officials orindividuals.
Civil rights include laws against racial andgenderdiscrimination.
B.THE BILL OFRIGHTS
1.The Constitution, as originally written, contained anumberof specific rights and restrictions on governmentauthority.
For example, the new government could not grant titlesofnobility or require a religious oath for holding a federal office.
2.WhenAnti-Federalistsobjectedtotheabsenceofabillofrights,theFederalistspledgedthattheFirstCongresswoulddraw up a list of safeguards to protect basic rights andfreedoms.
3.LedbyJamesMadison,theFirstCongresspassedtenamendments popularly known as the Bill of Rights. Whenthe states ratified these amendments in 1791, they becamepartof theConstitution.
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THE BILL OF RIGHTS AND THE STATES
THE SCOPE OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS
1.In 1791, every state constitution included a bill ofrights.
Thefirsttenamendmentswereintendedtorestrictthenewfederalgovernment,nottheexistingstategovernments.ItisimportanttonotethattheFirstAmendmentbeginswiththewords,"Congressshallmakenolaw..."
2.Barron v. Baltimore(1833)
John Barron co-owned a profitable wharf inBaltimoreHarbor. He complained that the city ofBaltimoredamagedhisbusinesswhenaconstructionprojectmadethe water too shallow for most vessels. Barronarguedthat the Fifth Amendment required the city ofBaltimoreto provide him with justcompensation.
LedbyChiefJusticeJohnMarshall,theSupremeCourtunanimously ruled that the Bill of Rights "containsnoexpression indicating an intention to apply them tothe state governments. This court cannot so applythem."TheSupremeCourtthusestablishedaprecedentthatthe freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights did notrestrictthe stategovernments.
B.THE FOURTEENTHAMENDMENT
1.Ratified in 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment declared,"Nostate shall make or enforce any law which shall abridgetheprivileges or immunities of citizens of the United Statesnorshallanystatedepriveanypersonoflife,liberty,orproperty,without due process of law; nor deny to any person withinitsjurisdiction the equal protection of thelaws."
2.The Fourteenth Amendment contains two key clausesthathavehadasignificantimpactonSupremeCourtdecisionsand U.S.politics:
TheDueProcessClause
The Equal ProtectionClause
C.CITLOW V. NEW YORK(1925)
1.BenjaminGitlowwroteapamphletentitled"TheRevolutionary Age" urging industrial workers to strikeandjoin in a revolution to overthrow organizedgovernment.
2.Gitlow was arrested and convicted for violating a NewYorkstate law that made it a crime to advocate the overthrowofthe government by force orviolence.
3.Gitlow argued that the New York law violated his righttofreedom of speech and thepress.
4.TheSupremeCourtvotedtoupholdGitlow'sconviction.However,theCourtalsoruledthat"freedomofspeechandofthepress...areamongthefundamentalandpersonalrightsandlibertiesprotectedbytheDueProcessClauseoftheFourteenthAmendment fromimpairmentbythestates..."
D.THE INCORPORATI ONDOCTRINE
1.In Barron v. Baltimore, the Supreme Court ruled thatthefederal courts could not stop the enforcement of statelawsthat restricted the rights enumerated in the Bill ofRights.
2.TheSupremeCourt'sdecisioninGit/owv.NewYorkbegantheincorporation processofusingtheDueProcessClauseoftheFourteenthAmendmenttoextendmostoftherequirementsof the Bill of Rights to thestates.
3.The incorporation process did not occur at once.Instead,
it has been a gradual process by which the SupremeCourthas used a series of individual decisions to incorporatetheBillofRightsintotheDueProcessClauseoftheFourteenthAmendment.
The process of selective incorporation generatedseveralmultiple-choice questions and a free-response question onthe2005 exam. It is very important to know how the Supreme Court has used the Due Process Clause of theFourteenthAmendmenttoapplyprotectionsintheBillofRightstothestates. Be sure that you can discuss how the rights ofcriminaldefendants and privacy rights have been incorporated.
FREEDOM OFRELIGION
THE FIRSTAMENDMENT
1.America'sreligiouslibertiesoriginatedincolonialoppositionto government-sponsoredchurches.
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2.The First Amendment contains two fundamentalguaranteesof religiousfreedom:
The Establishment Clause prohibiting "anestablishmentofreligion..."
TheFreeExerciseClauseprohibitinggovernmentfrominterfering with the practice ofreligion.
3.It is important to note that both of these protections havebeenextendedtothestatesbytheDueProcessClauseoftheFourteenthAmendment.
B.THEESTABLISHMENTCLAUSE
1."A wall of separation between Church andState"
ThomasJeffersoncontendedthattheFirstAmendmentcreated a "wall of separation between Church andState," forbidding any government support forreligion.Although Americans have traditionally opposedthe creation of a national church, school prayer and aidtochurch-related schools have sparked controversialcourtcasesthatresultedinlandmarkSupremeCourtdecisions.
2.School prayer: Engel v. Vitale(1962)
In1951,theNewYorkStateBoardofRegentsapprovedthe following prayer for recital each morning in New
York public schools: "Almighty God, we acknowledgeourdependence upon Thee, and we beg Thy blessingsuponus, our parents, our teachers, and ourcountry."
Steven Engel, the father of two children in theNew
HydeParkpublicschools,objectedwhenthelocalschoolboard adopted the prayer and directed it be saidaloudat the beginning of each schoolday.
Engel argued that the Regents' prayer violated theEstablishment Clause of the First Amendment asappliedto the states through the FourteenthAmendment.
TheSupremeCourtruledthatstate-sponsoredprayerinpublic schools was an unconstitutional violation ofthe Establishment Clause that "breaks theconstitutionalwall of separation between Church andState."
3.Aid to parochial schools: Lemon v. Kurtzman(1971)
Pennsylvania's 1968 NonpublicElementary
and Secondary Education Act allowed the stateSuperintendent of Public Instruction to reimbursechurch-related schools for secular textbooks,secular
instructional materials, and the salaries of teacherswhotaught secularsubjects.
The Supreme Court declared that aid tochurch-relatedschools must meet the following three tests: First,agovernment's action must have a secularlegislativepurpose. Second, the government's action mustneitheradvance nor inhibit religion. And third, thegovernment'saction must not foster an "excessiveentanglement"between government andreligion.
Based on the "Lemon test," the Supreme Courtstruck down the Pennsylvania law, saying that statefundingforprivatereligiousschoolsviolatestheEstablishmentClause of the FirstAmendment.
C.THE FREE EXERCISECLAUSE
1.Generalpoints
The First Amendment's Free Exercise Clauseguaranteeseach person the right to believe what theywant.
However, a religion cannot make an act legal thatwouldotherwise be illegal. The government can actwhen religious practices violate criminal laws, offendpublicmorals, or threaten community safety. For example,inOregon v. Smith (1990), the Supreme Courtbanned
the use of illegal drugs in religious ceremonies.
2.Limits on the Free Exercise Clause: Reynolds v. UnitedStates
(1879)
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GeorgeReynoldswasamember oftheMormonChurchwho married two women. Reynolds argued that hisconviction for polygamy should be overturned becauseitwas his religious duty to marry multipletimes.
The Supreme Court made an importantdistinction between religious beliefs and religious practices. TheCourt cannot restrict what a person believesbecausethat "lies solely between a man and his God."However,society has a right to legislate against religiousactivitiesthat violate a law of the land.
The Supreme Court ruled against Reynolds,arguingthat permitting polygamy would "make theprofesseddoctrines of religious belief superior to the law ofthe land, and in effect to permit every citizen to becomealaw untohimself."
FREEDOMOFSPEECHANDPRESS
THE DEFENSE OF FREESPEECH
1.The FirstAmendment
TheFramersbelievedthat therighttofreespeech isafundamental natural right. The First Amendmentclearlystates that, "Congress shall make no law . . .abridgingthefreedomofspeechorofthepress."
TheFirstandFourteenthAmendmentsprotectfreespeech from incursions of both the federal andstategovernments.
2.Protections of unpopularviews
Theguaranteesoffreespeechareintendedtoprotectthe expressions of unpopular views. "The freedomtodiffer," Justice Jackson wrote, "is not limited to thingsthat do not matter much."
Evenifadoctrineis"wrong,"itdoesnotfollowthatitshould be silenced. The English philosopher JohnStuartMillarguedthatwrongoroffensiveideasforceustosharpen our own views. If we believe in freeexpression,wemustbelieveinitspowertoovercomeerrorinafairdebate.
B.THE "CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER"TEST
1.TheEspionageActof1917prohibitedformsofdissentdeemedtobeharmfultothenation'swareffortinWorldWarI.
2.CharlesSchenck,thegeneralsecretaryoftheAmerican SocialistParty,stronglyopposedAmerica'sparticipationin WorldWar I.He mailed15,000leafletstopotentialdraftees comparing militaryconscriptiontoslavery.Schenckurgedhis readersto"assertyourrights"byresistingthemilitarydraft.
3.The government responded by arresting Schenck forviolatingthe Espionage Act. Schenck argued that theEspionage
Act was unconstitutional because it violated theFirstAmendment'spromisesoffreespeech.
4.Speakingforthemajority,JusticeOliverWendell Holmes wrote, "[T]hecharacterofeveryactdependsonthe circumstances inwhichitisdone.Themoststringent protectionoffreespeechwouldnotprotectamaninfalsely
shoutingfireinatheatre,andcausingapanic....Thequestionineverycaseiswhetherthewordsusedareusedinsuchcircumstancesandareofsuchanatureastocreateaclearandpresentdangerthattheywillbringaboutthesubstantive evils that Congress has the right toprevent."
5. The clear and present danger test created a precedentthatFirstAmendmentguaranteesoffreespeecharenotabsolute.
6. In Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969), the Supreme Court limitedtheclear and present danger test by ruling that thegovernmentcould punish the advocacy of illegal action only if"suchadvocacy is directed to inciting or producing imminentlawless action and is likely to incite or produce suchaction."
C.LIMITS ON FREESPEECH
1.Libel andslander
Libel is a written defamation that falsely attacksapersongood name andreputation.
Slander is a spoken defamation that falsely attacksapersongood name andreputation.
IntheNewYorkTimesv.Sullivan(1964),theSupreme
Court ruled that statements about public figuresarelibelous only when they are both false andpurposelymalicious.
2.Obscenity
InRothv.UnitedStates(1957),theSupremeCourtruled that "[o]bscenity is not within the area ofconstitutionallyprotectedspeechorpress."
In Miller v. California (1973), the Court listed anumberof tests for obscenity. It is important to note that it isupto each community to implement thesetests.
3.Symbolicspeech
Symbolic speech includes forms ofnonverbalcommunication such as carrying signs,wearing armbands, and burningflags.
In 1965, high school students John and MaryBethTinker protested the Vietnam War by wearingblackarmbands containing a peace symbol. When theTinkersrefused to remove their armbands, they were senthomefor violating a school board policy banningarmbands.
InTinkerv.DesMoinesIndependentSchoolDistrict
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(1969), the Supreme Court ruled that the schoolboard'saction violated the First and FourteenthAmendment'sprotection of free expression. Writing for themajority, Justice Abe Fortas stated that students and teachersdonot "shed their constitutional rights to freedom ofspeechorexpressionattheschoolhousegate."
In 1984, Gregory Johnson burned an American flag during a rally outside the RepublicanNational
Convention in Dallas, Texas. Texas stateauthoritiesprosecuted Johnson for violating a state lawforbiddingthe "desecration of a venerated object." In Texasv.
Johnson(1989),theSupremeCourtruled thatflag
burning is a form of symbolic speech protected bytheFirstAmendment.
It is important to note that the Supreme Court hasruledthat the First Amendment does not protectsymbolicspeech intended to incite illegal actions. Forexample,states may make it a crime to burn a cross withthe intent to threaten racial terror.
D.PRIORRESTRAINT
1.Prior restraint is the attempt to limit freedom of pressbypreventing material from being published. Prior restraintisthus a form ofcensorship.
2.The Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that priorrestraintis a violation of the First Amendment protection offreedom of press. Important test cases have included Nearv.
Minnesota (1931) and New York Times Company v.United States(1971).
3.It is important to note that public school officials do havea broad power to censor school newspapers. InHazelwood
School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988), the Supreme Court ruled
that school administrators can exercise "editorial controloverthe style and content of student speech inschool-sponsoredexpressiveactivitiessolongastheiractionsarereasonablyrelated to legitimate pedagogicalconcerns."
GHTS OF THEACCUSED
RIGHTSINTHEORIGINALCONSTITUTION
1.A writ of habeascorpus
TheConstitutionexpresslystates,"ThePrivilegeofthe WritofHabeasCorpusshallnotbesuspended,unlesswheninCasesofRebellionorInvasionthepublicsafetymay requireit."
A writ of habeas corpus is a court order directing thataprisoner be brought before a court and that courtofficersshowcausewhytheprisonershouldnotbereleased.Thewrit of habeas corpus thus prevents unjust arrestsandimprisonments.
2.Bills ofattainder
The Constitution prohibits Congress and thestatelegislatures from passing a bill ofattainder.
A bill of attainder is a legislative act that provides forthe the punishment of a person without a courttrial.
3.Ex post factolaws
The Constitution expressly prohibits Congress andthestate legislatures from enacting ex post factolaws.
An ex post facto law is a law applied to anact committed before the law wasenacted.
B.SEARCHES ANDSEIZURES
1.TheFourthAmendmentdeclares,"Therightofthepeopletobesecureintheirpersons,houses,papers,andeffects,againstunreasonablesearchesandseizures,shallnotbeviolated...."
2.The exclusionaryrule
The exclusionary rule prohibits evidence obtained byillegalsearchesorseizuresfrombeingadmittedincourt.The Supreme Court first established the exclusionaryruleinWeeksv.UnitedStates(1914).Although Weekswasalandmarkdecisioncase,theCourt'sdecisionappliedonly to federalcases.
The Supreme Court extended the exclusionary ruletothe states in Mapp v. Ohio (1961). This caseillustratesthe process of incorporation by which theFourth
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Amendment was applied to the states through theDueProcessClauseoftheFourteenthAmendment.
C.THE RIGHT TOCOUNSEL
1.The Sixth Amendment states, "The accused shall enjoytheright ...tohavetheassistanceofcounselforhisdefense."
ItisimportanttonotethatwhentheSixthAmendmentwasratified,thisrightdidnotapplytopeopletriedinstatecourts.
2. Gideon v. Wainwright(1963)
Clarence Earl Gideon was accused of breakingandentering a Florida poolroom and stealing a smallamountofmoney.
ThejudgerefusedGideon'srequestforacourt-appointedfreelawyer.
Gideon appealed his conviction, arguing that byrefusingto appoint a lawyer to help him, the Florida courtviolated rights promised by the Sixth andFourteenthAmendments.
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruledthatthe Sixth Amendment right-to-counsel provisionappliestothoseaccusedofmajorcrimesunderstatelaws.Thislandmark case illustrates the process ofincorporation, by which the Sixth Amendment was applied tothe
states through the Due Process Clause of theFourteenth Amendment.
D.THE MIRANDARULE
1.TheFifthAmendmentforbidsforcedself-incrimination,stating that no person "shall be compelled to be awitnessagainsthimself."
2.Miranda v. Arizona(1966)
Ernesto Miranda was a mentally challengeddrifter accused of kidnapping and raping an18-year-old woman nearPhoenix.
After two hours of police interrogation, Miranda signeda written confession. The police did not informMirandaof his constitutional rights at any time duringthe questioning.
The Supreme Court overturned Miranda'sconviction,declaring that the police must inform criminalsuspects
of their constitutional rights before questioningsuspectsafterarrest.
The Miranda rules include informing a suspect thatheor she has the right to remain silent, to stopansweringquestions at any time, and the right to have alawyerpresent during questioning. Suspects must also betoldthat what they say can be used against them in acourtoflaw.
THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY AND ABORTIONRIGHTS
THE RIGHT TOPRIVACY
1.Justice Louis D. Brandeis defined privacy as "the right tobe leftalone."
2.The Bill of Rights does not specifically grant Americans arightto privacy. However,the following constitutional provisionsimply a right toprivacy:
TheFirstAmendment's guaranteeoffreedomofreligion.The Third Amendment's prohibition againstthe government forcing citizens to quarter soldiers intheirhomes.
The Fourth Amendment's protectionagainstunreasonable searches andseizures.
The Fifth Amendment's rule that private propertycannot beseizedwithoutIIdueprocessoflaw.11
B.GRISWOLD V. CONNECTICUT(1965)
1.Estelle Griswold, the executive director of thePlannedParenthood League of Connecticut, challengedtheconstitutionalityofan1879Connecticutlawthatprohibitedtheuseof"anydrug,medicinalarticleorinstrumentforthepurpose of preventingconception."
2.The Supreme Court ruled that the Connecticutlawcriminalizing the use of contraceptives violated the righttomaritalprivacy.
3.Writingforthemajority,JusticeWilliam0.Douglasargued thattherighttoprivacywasfoundintheunstatedliberties impliedbytheexplicitlystatedrightsintheBillofRights.
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4.The right to privacy established in Griswold v. Connecticutsetan important precedent for Roe v.Wade.
C.ROE V. WADE(1973)
1.Jane Roe (a pseudonym for Norma Mccorvey)challenged
theconstitutionalityofaTexaslawallowingabortionsonlytosavethelifeofthemother.
2.Roearguedthatthedecisiontoobtainanabortionshouldbeprotectedbytherighttoprivacyimpliedbythe BillofRights.
3. The Supreme Court struck down the Texas law by a vote of 7
to2.
D.CHALLENGES TOROE
1.InWebsterv.ReproductiveHealthServices(1989),theSupreme Court upheld a Missouri law prohibiting abortions (exceptthose preserving the mother's life) in any publicly operatedhospital or clinic inMissouri.
2.In Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v.Casey
(1992), theSupremeCourtruledthatastatemayplacereasonablelimitsthatdonotplacean"undueburden"ona woman's right to have an abortion. For example, astatemay impose a 24-hour waiting period and requireparentalconsent forminors.
Each AP U.S. Government and Politics exam containsquestionsdevoted to Supreme Court cases. Miranda v. Arizona and Roev.Wade have generated the most multiple-choice questions.
It is important to remember that the "Miranda warning"protects criminal suspects against unfair policeinterrogation.
ItisalsoimportanttorememberthattheRoev.Wadedecisionwas based on the right to privacy established in Griswoldv.Connecticut.
CivilRights
CONCEPTIONS OFEQUALITY
THE DECLARATION OFINDEPENDENCE
1.ThomasJeffersonfamouslydeclaredthat"allmenarecreatedequal."
2.U.S.politicalculturehasinterpretedJefferson'sassertiontomeanabeliefinpoliticalequality,legalequality,andequalityofopportunity.
3.U.S. political culture does not support economicequality.
B.THECONSTITUTION
1.Neither the Constitution nor the Bill of Rights uses theword
equality.
2.The FourteenthAmendment
TheFourteenthAmendmentforbidsthestatesfromdenyinganyperson"theequalprotectionofthelaws." TheEqualProtection Clausehasplayedakeyroleinthe struggletoprovidecivilrightstoallAmericans.
C.THE SUPREMECOURT
1.Reasonableclassification
The Supreme Court has ruled that governmentmusthavethepowertomakereasonableclassificationsbetweenpersonsandgroups.
Reasonableclassificationsincludedenyingthevotetocitizensundertheageof18orimposingahighexcisetaxonthesaleofcigaretteswhichsmokersmustpay.
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2.Strictscrutiny
The Supreme Court has ruled that classification byraceand ethnic background is inherently suspect and musttherefore meet a strict scrutinytest.
Classification based on race and ethnicbackgroundmust be justified by a "compelling publicinterest."
THE STRUGGLE FOR RACIALEQUALITY
THEDREDSCOTTDECISION,1857
1.In Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), the Supreme Courtruledthat Black people were not citizens of the United Statesandtherefore could not petition theCourt.
2.The Dred Scott decision established the principle thatnationallegislationcouldnotlimitthespreadofslaveryintotheterritories.
3.The Dred Scott decision repealed the Northwest Ordinanceof1787 and the Missouri Compromise of1820.
B.THE RECONSTRUCTIONAMENDMENTS
1.The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery andinvoluntary servitude.
2.The Fourteenth Amendment made former slavescitizens,thus invalidating the Dred Scott decision. Theamendment'sDueProcessandEqualProtectionclausesweredesignedtoprotect the rights of newly freed African Americancitizensagainst infringement by stategovernments.
3.The Fifteenth Amendment provided suffrage forAfricanAmericanmales.
C.PLESSY V. FERGUSON(1896)
1.ThecaseinvolvedadisputeoverthelegalityofaLouisianalaw requiring "equal but separate accommodations forthewhite and colored races" on railroadcoaches.
2.The Supreme Court upheld the law, ruling thatsegregatedpublic facilities were constitutional so long astheaccommodations were "separate butequal."
3.The Court's "separate but equal" doctrinesanctionedsegregationandstrengthenedthestatesattheexpenseofthe federalgovernment.
D.BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION OF TOPEKA(1954)
1.Led by Chief Justice Earl Warren, the Supreme Court ruledthat racially segregated schools violated the EqualProtectionClause of the FourteenthAmendment.
2.TheSupremeCourtreversedtheprincipleof"separatebutequal" by declaring that racially segregated schools areinherentlyunequal.
E.THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF1964
1.The bill finally passed when the Senate invoked cloture toenda filibuster that lasted 83days.
2.The act did thefollowing:
Ended Jim Crow segregation by makingracialdiscrimination illegal in hotels, motels,restaurants,and other places of publicaccommodation.
Prohibited discrimination in employment on the basisofrace, color, national origin, religion, orgender.
CreatedtheEqualEmployment OpportunityCommissionto monitor and enforce protections againstjobdiscrimination.
Authorized the Department of Justice to initiatelawsuitstodesegregatepublicfacilitiesandschools.
Prohibited discrimination in employment on groundsofrace, color, religion, national origin, orsex.
3.TheSupremeCourtupheldtheprovisionsoutlawingsegregationinplacesofpublicaccommodationbyrulingthatsuchsegregationinvolvedinterstatecommerceandthusfellunder the legislative authority ofCongress.
AP U.S. Government and Politics test writers have devoted
a significant number of multiple-choice questions to Brown
v. Board of Education of Topeka and the Civil RightsActof 1964. Be sure that you know that Brown used theEqualProtectionClauseoftheFourteenthAmendmenttoreverse
Plessyv.Ferguson.AlsobesureyouknowthattheCourtusedthe interstate commerce provision of the Constitution toupholdthe legality of the Civil Rights Act of1964.
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THE STRUGGLE FOR AFRICAN AMERICANVOTINGRIGHTS
A.METHODS OF DISENFRANCHISING AFRICANAMERICANVOTERS
1.Poll taxes required voters to pay a special tax in order tovote.
2.Literacy or "understanding" tests required voters topassdifficult reading comprehension questions before theycouldregister tovote.
3.WhiteprimariesexcludedAfricanAmericansfromvotinginprimaryelections.
4.By 1960, only 29 percent of African Americans of votingagewere registered to vote in the South. In contrast, 61percentof whites wereregistered.
B.ELIMINATING THE POLLTAX
1.TheTwenty-FourthAmendment(1964)prohibitedpolltaxesin federalelections.
2.In 1966, the Supreme Court voided poll taxes instateelections.
C.THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF1965
1.Outlawed literacy tests and other discriminatory practicesthathadbeenresponsiblefordisenfranchisingAfricanAmericanvoters.
2.Provided for federal oversight of voter registration inareaswith a history of discriminatory votingpractices.
3.Significantlyimprovedthevoterregistrationdisparitybetween whitesandAfricanAmericans.AsthenumberofAfrican Americanvotersincreased,sodidthenumberofAfrican Americanelectedofficials.In1965,onlyabout70African Americans heldpublicofficeinthe11Southernstates.Bythe earlytwenty-firstcenturythenumbersoaredtoover5,000.
D.RACIALGERRYMANDERING
1.Followingthe1990census,severalstatelegislaturescreatedoddly shaped districts designed to give minority groupvotersa numericalmajority.
2.In Shaw v. Reno (1993), the Supreme Court ruledthat
oddlyshapedminority-majoritydistrictswouldbeheldtoastandardofstrictscrutinyundertheEqualProtectionClause.
3.Subsequent SupremeCourtdecisionsrefinedtheShawrulingbyholdingthattheuseofrace asa"predominantfactor" in drawing district lines should be presumed tobe unconstitutional.
WOMEN'SSTRUGGLEFORCIVILRIGHTS
A.ORIGINAL STATUS OFWOMEN
1.Although women were considered citizens, they hadnopoliticalrights.
2.Women were subjected to a male-dominated system offamilylaw. For example, women could not divorce theirhusbands,sign contracts, or dispose ofproperty.
3.Women were denied educational and careeropportunities.For example, in 1873, the Supreme Court denied the rightofwomen to practice law,saying, "The paramount destinyand