Civil Rights Civil Rights and and Civil LibertiesCivil Liberties

HUMAN RIGHTS: HUMAN RIGHTS: a right a right that is believed to belong that is believed to belong justifiably to every personjustifiably to every person

CIVIL LIBERTIES: CIVIL LIBERTIES: basic freedoms basic freedoms guaranteed by Bill of guaranteed by Bill of RightsRights

CIVIL RIGHTS: CIVIL RIGHTS: Protection Protection from unequal treatmentfrom unequal treatment

What are civil rights and What are civil rights and what are civil liberties?what are civil liberties?

Civil Rights = The right of every person to equal protection under the law and equal access to society’s opportunities and public facilities.

Civil Liberties = Individual rights that are protected from infringement by government.

Civil Rights and EqualityCivil Rights and Equality“All men are created equal?”“All men are created equal?”- Equality – One of the founding

principles of our democracy, yet still unrealized.

- In theory, Americans have equal rights; in practice, they are not equal and never have been.

The Struggle for Equality: The Struggle for Equality: African AmericansAfrican Americans

15th Amendment (1870)= Gave African American MEN the right to vote.

"The first vote" A.R. Waud. Wood engraving. 1870

The House of Representatives passed the 15th Amendment on February 25, 1869, by a vote of 144 to 44.

The Senate passed the 15th Amendment on February 26, 1869, by a vote of 39 to 13.

What happened after this? Did everyone get their

vote?

Poll TaxPoll Tax

Proof of payment of a poll tax was a prerequisite to voter registration in Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Virginia and Texas

Required otherwise eligible voters to pay between $1.50 and $1.75 to register to vote – a lot of money at the time, and a big barrier to the working classes and poor

A $1 tax would be equal to $18.41 today

Grandfather ClauseGrandfather ClauseWith new requirements for voting such

as literacy tests, payment of poll taxes, and/or residency and property restrictions to register to vote, states in some cases exempted those whose ancestors (grandfathers) had the right to vote before the Civil War

Who did this help?

The Struggle for Equality: The Struggle for Equality: African AmericansAfrican Americans

Jim Crow Laws (Post 1877)

De jure: enforced by lawDe facto: enforced by society

The Jim Crow laws were racial segregation state and local laws enacted after the Reconstruction period in Southern United States that continued in force until 1965 mandating de jure racial segregation in all public facilities in Southern U.S. states (of the former Confederacy), starting in 1890 with a "separate but equal" status for African Americans. Conditions for African Americans were consistently inferior and underfunded compared to those provided for white Americans. This decision institutionalized a number of economic, educational and social disadvantages. De jure segregation mainly applied to the Southern United States, while Northern segregation was generally de facto — patterns of segregation in housing enforced by covenants, bank lending practices and job discrimination, including discriminatory union practices for decades.

Would you have been able to Would you have been able to vote?vote?The Alabama Literacy TestThe Alabama Literacy Test Which body of Congress can try impeachments of the

President? At what time of day on January 20th does the term of

the President end? If the president does not sign a bill, how many days is

he allowed in which to return it to Congress for reconsideration?

If a bill is passed by Congress and the President refuses to sign it and does not send it back to Congress in session within the specified period of time, is the bill defeated or does it become law?

If the United States wishes to purchase land for an arsenal and have exclusive legislative authority over it, consent is required from whom?

Which officer of the United States government is designated as President of the Senate?

When is the president not allowed to exercise his power to pardon?

Why is the power to grant patents given to Congress? What is a tribunal? If a person charged with treason denies his guilt, how

many people must testify against him before he can be convicted?

Landmark Court CasesLandmark Court Cases- Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

- “Separate but equal”- Court endorsed Jim Crow Laws- The use of race as a criterion of exclusion in

public matters was not unreasonable.Homer Plessy, a creole man who was 1/8th black arrested for sitting in “white” car on a train. Issue taken to supreme court and upheld “separate but equal” 7 to 1.

Landmark Court CasesLandmark Court Cases- Brown v. Board of Education (1954) - supreme court ruled that “separate

educational facilities are inherently unequal.

http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/plessy-v-ferguson/videos/separate-but-not-equal?m=528e394da93ae&s=undefined&f=1&free=false

2424thth Amendment and Civil Amendment and Civil Rights ActRights ActProhibits

requiring a poll tax for voters in federal elections

Civil Rights Act of 1964outlawed discrimination based on race, color,

religion, sex, or national origin. It ended unequal application of voter registration requirements and racial segregation in schools, at the workplace and by facilities that served the general public (known as "public accommodations"

Although ratified on February 3, 1870, the promise of the 15th Amendment would not be fully realized for almost a century. Through the use of poll taxes, literacy tests and other means, Southern states were able to effectively disenfranchise African Americans. The most direct attack on the problem of African American disfranchisement came in 1965. Prompted by reports of continuing discriminatory voting practices in many Southern states, President Lyndon B. Johnson, himself a southerner, urged Congress on March 15, 1965, to pass legislation “which will make it impossible to thwart the 15th amendment.” He reminded Congress that “we cannot have government for all the people until we first make certain it

is government of and by all the people.” The Voting Rights Act of 1965, extended in 1970, 1975, and 1982, abolished all remaining deterrents to exercising the franchise and authorized Federal supervision of voter registration where necessary.

The Civil Rights MovementThe Civil Rights Movement1955 – Bus Boycott in Montgomery, AL1957 – Little Rock, AK Desegregation

Civil Disobedience: the refusal to comply with certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest.

The Civil Rights MovementThe Civil Rights Movement1963 – March in

Birmingham, AL led by MLK, Jr.

1963 – March on Washington, DC. “I have a dream” speech.

1965 March from Selma to Montgomery: stopped with water hoses

Women and the Women and the Struggle for EqualityStruggle for Equality

- United States carried on policies from England when the nation was founded.

- 1848 – First Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, NY

- 19th Amendment in 1920 gave women the right to vote.

YEAR EVENT

1776 Only people who own land can vote, most are white male

1789 George Washington elected president, only 6% of population can vote

1790 Only white immigrants can become citizens

1848 Women and African Americans join forces to gain voting rights

1856 All white men can vote

1868 Former slaves granted citizenship

1870 Vote cannot be denied based on race

1872 Women arrested for trying to vote

1876 Court rules Native Americans are not citizens so they cannot vote

1887 Native Americans can be citizens if they disaffiliate from their tribe

1913 Women lead voting rights marches

1920 Women gain right to vote

1947 Native Americans gain right to vote

1964 Voting Rights as Civil Rights: literacy tests and taxes still being used, poll taxes banned

1965 Cannot discriminate!

1971 Voting age lowered to 18 after Vietnam War

Equality TodayEquality TodayAfrican Americans and Women:

Notable Gains v. Continued Struggles

De facto Discrimination: Discrimination that is the result of social, economic, or cultural biases or conditions.

De jure Discrimination: Discrimination based on the law.

Equality of Result: Policies aimed at reducing or eliminating de facto discrimination.

Affirmative ActionAffirmative ActionAffirmative Action = Deliberate effort to

provide full and equal opportunities in employment, education, and other areas for women, minorities, and individuals belonging to other disadvantaged groups.

Long-term effects of discrimination

What do you notice?

Wage Equality: ???Wage Equality: ???

The Main Argument in Support The Main Argument in Support of Compromising Civil Libertiesof Compromising Civil LibertiesWhen they conflict, national

security takes precedence over civil liberties.

Examples (of why this is good): Foiled terrorist attacks. Most Americans are unaffected. Stability ensured. Democratic process as

watchdog.

The Counter-ArgumentThe Counter-Argument

Civil liberties take precedence over National Security.

Examples (of why this is bad): Racial profiling Japanese internment Discrimination against Muslims

The Patriot Act (2001)The Patriot Act (2001)