4.4, 4.5, 4.6- civil rights

Question 1

What rights are protected by the Bill of Rights (amendments 1-10)?

Answer 1

• freedom of religion
• freedom of speech
• right to bear arms
• freedom from unreasonable search and seizures
• freedom from cruel and unusual punishment

Question 2

What rights are protected by the 14th Amendment?

Answer 2

• any person born in the US is a citizen and therefore has constitutionally protected rights
• equal protection clause: prevented courts and states from narrowing the definition of ‘persons’

Question 3

what ammendement gave african americans the right to vote?

Answer 3

15th ammendment - the right to vote could not be denied based on race

Question 4

What are the arguments that the Supreme Court has significant power in protecting rights?

Answer 4

• the power of judicial review
• vagueness of the constitution allows fo the expansion of liberties protected
• respecting the judicial president means that the decision is unlikely to be overturned by future courts

Question 5

What are the arguments that the Supreme Court is limited in its protection of rights?

Answer 5

• constitutional amendments can overturn rulings
• they rely on other branches to enforce their decisions
• they are not proactive and can only hear cases that come to them.
• recent courts have struck down rights

Question 6

Give an example of when the enforcement of a SC ruling was reliant on other branches.

Answer 6

• Brown v BOE
• Many states failed to desegregate until Congress passed the 1964 Civil Rights Act

Question 7

give an example of when the SC was unable to be proactive in addressing a gap in the Constitution.

Answer 7

• prior to addressing gun rights in 2008 in the case DC v Heller, for many years the interpretation of the Second Amendment had been an issue
• DC v Heller ruled that the 2nd amendment protected an individual’s right to bear arms

Question 8

Give an example of when a constitutional amendment overturned a SC ruling.

Answer 8

• the 14th Amendment overturned the ruling in Dred Scott v Sandford (1857)
• Dred Scott v Sandford ruled that African Americans were not citizens and therefore did not have constitutional protections

Question 9

Give two examples of broad interpretations of rights protected by the Constitution.

Answer 9

• Obergefell v hodges
• Roe v wade

Question 10

give an example of pressure groups protecting voting rights.

Answer 10

in the 2016 election, Native American groups were involved in improving native turnout.
e.g Get-Out-The-Native-Vote (GOTNV)

Question 11

What are Jim Crow laws?

Answer 11

laws which continue to restrict minority rights- often used in southern states

• e.g literacy tests, voter ID’s

Question 12

what was the act that helped to protect against Jim Crow voting laws?

Answer 12

1965- voting rights act
- any state with a history of discrimination had to get any changes to voting laws verified by the federal government

Question 13

What are sanctuary cities?

Answer 13

• Cities that are reluctant to enforce government immigration legislation
• implement laws that are favourable to immigrants

Question 14

give an example of when the sc upheld the 8th amendment- the death penalty.

Answer 14

Roper v Simmons (2005)- declared it unconstitutional to sentence anyone to death for a crime thy committed as a child

Question 15

what was the case that established that race could in determining admissions?

Answer 15

University of California v Bakke (1978)
- ruled that the use of quotas was unconstitutional

Question 16

Explain the case Grutter v Bollinger.
- date
- desision

Answer 16

Grutter v Bollinger (2003)
- upheald the use of affirmative action programs- as long as race was considered as one of many factors in admissions
- suggested that affirmative action programs would come to an end in 25 years

Question 17

what was the recent case that put an end to affirmative action?

Answer 17

Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard (2023)
- ruled that race based affirmative action programs were unconstitutional under the 14th ammendment equal protection clause

Question 18

what did the “no longer seperate, not yet equal survey” show that students of other races would have to get in their SAT’S to be equaly as competitive as a black student with an SAT score of 1100?

Answer 18

• latino: 1280
• white: 1410
• asian: 1550

Question 19

what was the change in the number of black people in white collar jobs between 1960 and 2002?

Answer 19

• 15% - 70%

Question 20

How did Clarance Thomas argued that affirmative action programs create inequality?

Answer 20

• “they accept the notion that blacks are in some way inferior”

Question 21

what did a 2011 report from the education trust say was the graduation rate amoung black people vs white people?

Answer 21

• 40% for black people
• 62% for white people

Question 22

what are the arguments for affirmative action programs?

Answer 22

• promotes diversity
• tool to correct historical injucties and discrimination, improves enrollment of marginalised groups
• equality of opperunity- corrects institutional barriers

Question 23

what are the arguments against affirmative argument?

Answer 23

• reverse discrimination- non minorities experienc disadvantages
• undermines merit bases selection
• does not adress the root of the problem- does not properly equip individuals for higher education
• stigmatises successfull candidates

Question 24

what was the case that upheald segregation?

Answer 24

plessy v ferguson: ‘seperate but equal’ - ruled that segregation was legal if all races had the same quality of services

Question 25

give an example of a supreme court desision on rights that passed with only 6 of 9 votes.

Answer 25

• dobbs v jackson womens health
• students for fair admissions v harvard (6 of 8)

Question 26

give an example of a failed reform from the BLM protest.

Answer 26

the geroeg floyd juctice in policing act passed in the house but stalled in the senate due to republican conserns over ending the qualified immunity for police officiers

Question 27

how many non-white state governors are there currently?

Answer 27

3

Question 28

what are majority minority districts? when were they create? how many are there in the HOR?

Answer 28

• district lines are redrawn so the majority of a population is a minority
• created by the 1965 VRA
• 236 in the HOR