Civil Rights And Civil Liberties Vocab

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Civil Liberties

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the state of being subject only to laws established for the good of the community, especially with regard to freedom of action and speech.

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Clear and Present Danger

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a doctrine adopted by the Supreme Court of the United States to determine under what circumstances limits can be placed on First Amendment freedoms of speech, press, or assembly.

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Slander

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the action or crime of making a false spoken statement damaging to a person's reputation.

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McCarthyism

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a vociferous campaign against alleged communists in the US government and other institutions carried out under Senator Joseph McCarthy in the period 1950–54. Many of the accused were blacklisted or lost their jobs, although most did not in fact belong to the Communist Party.

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"Time, Place, and Manner" Restrictions

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justified when it is neutral as to content and serves a significant government interest and leaves open ample alternative channels of communication

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Commercial Speech

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US legal term relating to speech done on behalf of a company or individual for the intent of making a profit. It is economic in nature and usually has the intent of convincing the audience to partake in a particular action, often purchasing a specific product.

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Incorporation Doctrine

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a constitutional doctrine through which selected provisions of the Bill of Rights are made applicable to the states through the Due Process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

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Symbolic Speech

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a legal term in United States law used to describe actions that purposefully and discernibly convey a particular message or statement to those viewing it.

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Right to Assemble

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right or ability of people to come together and collectively express, promote, pursue, and defend their ideas. The right to freedom of association is recognized as a human right, a political right and a civil liberty.

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Fourteenth Ammendment

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addresses citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws, and was proposed in response to issues related to former slaves following the American Civil War.

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Hate Crime

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a crime motivated by racial, sexual, or other prejudice, typically one involving violence.

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Right to Associate

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right of individuals to join or leave groups of a person's own choosing, and for the group to take collective action to pursue the interests of members.

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Equal Protection Clause

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part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Theclause, which took effect in 1868, provides that no state shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction "the equal protection of the laws".

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Speech Codes

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any rule or regulation that limits, restricts, or bans speech beyond the strict legal limitations upon freedom of speech or press found in the legal definitions of harassment, slander, libel, and fighting words.

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Search Warrant

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a legal document authorizing a police officer or other official to enter and search premises.Choose languageAfrikaansAlbanianAmharicArabicArmenianAzerbaijaniBanglaBasqueBelarusianBosnianBulgarianBurmeseCatalanCebuanoChinese (Simplified)Chinese (Traditional)CorsicanCroatianCzechDanishDutchEsperantoEstonianFilipinoFinnishFrenchGalicianGeorgianGermanGreekGujaratiHaitian CreoleHausaHawaiianHebrewHindiHmongHungarianIcelandicIgboIndonesianIrishItalianJapaneseJavaneseKannadaKazakhKhmerKoreanKurdishKyrgyzLaoLatinLatvianLithuanianLuxembourgishMacedonianMalagasyMalayMalayalamMalteseMaoriMarathiMongolianNepaliNorwegianNyanjaPashtoPersianPolishPortuguesePunjabiRomanianRussianSamoanScottish GaelicSerbianShonaSindhiSinhalaSlovakSlovenianSomaliSouthern SothoSpanishSundaneseSwahiliSwedishTajikTamilTeluguThaiTurkishUkrainianUrduUzbekVietnameseWelshWestern FrisianXhosaYiddishYorubaZulu

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Due Process Clause

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Due process deals with the administration of justice and thus the due process clause acts as a safeguard from arbitrary denial of life, liberty, or property by the Government outside the sanction of law.

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Prior Restraint

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government action that prohibits speech or other expression before it can take place.

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Indictment

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a formal charge or accusation of a serious crime.

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Selective Incorporation

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a constitutional doctrine that ensures states cannot enact laws that take away the constitutional rights of American citizens that are enshrined in the Bill of Rights

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Libel

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a published false statement that is damaging to a person's reputation; a written defamation.

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Grand Jury

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a jury, normally of twenty-three jurors, selected to examine the validity of an accusation before trial

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Preferred Freedoms

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some constitutional freedoms, principally those guaranteed by the First Amendment, are fundamental in a free society and consequently are entitled to more judicial protection than other constitutional values. Term

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Actual Malice

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United States law is a condition required to establish libel against public officials or public figures and is defined as "knowledge that the information was false" or that it was published "with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not."

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Substantive Due Process

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a principle allowing courts to protect certain rights deemed fundamental from government interference, even where procedural protections are present or where those rights are not specifically mentioned elsewhere in the constitution.

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Establishment Clause

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the clause in the First Amendment of the US Constitution that prohibits the establishment of religion by Congress.

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Obscenity

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the state or quality of being obscene; obscene behavior, language, or images.

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Procedural Due Process

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Principle required by the Constitution that when the state or federal government acts in such a way that denies a citizen of a life, liberty, or property interest, the person must first be given notice and the opportunity to be heard.

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Free Exercise Clause

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Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise

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Community Standards

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local norms bounding acceptable conduct. Sometimes these standards can be itemized in a list that states the community's values and sets guidelines for participation in the community.

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Probable Cause

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reasonable grounds (for making a search, pressing a charge, etc.)

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Wall of Separation Principle

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"Separation of church and state" is a phrase used by Thomas Jefferson and others expressing an understanding of the intent and function of the Establishment Clause and Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States

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Prurient Interests

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marked by or arousing an immoderate or unwholesomeinterest or desire

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Exclusionary Rule

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a law that prohibits the use of illegally obtained evidence in a criminal trial.

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Lemon Test

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The three-part test enunciated in Lemon v. Kurtzman which is used to asses whether a law violates the Establishment Clause. The "Establishment Clause" was intended to prevent any governmental endorsement or support of religion.

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Preferred Position

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interpretation of the First Amendment that holds that freedom of expression is so essential to the operation of a democracy that judges should give it special protection and should almost never allow governments to punish persons for what they say, only for what they do.AP Gov Textbook Ch 16 Flashcards | Quizlet

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"Fruit of the Poison Tree"

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a legal metaphor in the United States used to describe evidence that is obtained illegally. The logic of the terminology is that if the source (the "tree") of the evidence or evidence itself is tainted, then anything gained (the "fruit") from it is tainted as well

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Equal Access Act

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a United States federal law passed in 1984 to compel federally funded secondary schools to provide equal access to extracurricular clubs.

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Imminent Danger

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any conditions or practices in any place of employment which are such that a danger exists which could reasonably be expected to cause death or serious physical harm

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"Good Faith" Exception

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a legal doctrine providing an exemption to the exclusionary rule.

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Parochial Schools

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a private school supported by a particular church or parish.

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Neutrality and Clarity

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means you should look at situations with a clear mind and being neutral, not for one side. Usually in context with Religion.

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Miranda Rights

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a right to silence warning given by police in the United States to criminal suspects in police custody (or in a custodial interrogation) before they are interrogated

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School Vouchers

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a government-funded voucher redeemable for tuition fees at a school other than the public school that a student could attend free.

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Least-Restrictive Means

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a standard imposed by the courts when considering the validity of legislation that touches upon constitutional interests.

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Capital Punishment

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the legally authorized killing of someone as punishment for a crime.

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Freedom of Expression

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Right to express one's ideas and opinions freely through speech, writing, and other forms of communication but without deliberately causing harm to others' character and/or reputation by false or misleading statements. Freedom of press is part offreedom of expression.

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John Peter Zenger

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American journalist, printer, and publisher, born in Germany: his libel trial and eventual acquittal (1735) set a precedent for establishing freedom of the press in America.

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Self-incrimination

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The act of implicating oneself in a crime or exposing oneself to criminal prosecution

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Oliver Wendell Holmes

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an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932, and as Acting Chief Justice of the United States January–February 1930.

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Pentagon Papers

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A classified study of the Vietnam War that was carried out by the Department of Defense. An official of the department, Daniel Ellsberg, gave copies of the study in 1971 to the New York Times and Washington Post.

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Patriot Act

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Act of Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001. With its ten-letter abbreviation (USAPATRIOT) expanded, the full title is "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001".

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Civil Rights

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the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality.

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Equal Pay Act of 1963

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a United States labor law amending the Fair Labor Standards Act, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex (see Gender paygap). It was signed into law on June 10, 1963, by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program.

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Reverse Discrimination

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(in the context of the allocation of resources or employment) the practice or policy of favoring individuals belonging to groups known to have been discriminated against previously.

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Suspect Classifications

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A class of individuals that have been historically subject to discrimination. Any statute that makes a distinction between individuals based on any of the suspect classifications (ie. alienage, race) will be subject to a strict scrutiny standard of review before the Supreme Court.

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Civil Rights Act of 1964

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a landmark civil rights and US labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

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Equality of Opportunity

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a stipulation that all people should be treated similarly, unhampered by artificial barriers or prejudices or preferences, except when particular distinctions can be explicitly justified.

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Strict Scrutiny and Semi-Strict Scrutiny

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a form of judicial review that courts use to determine the constitutionality of certain laws. To pass strict scrutiny, the legislature must have passed the law to further a "compelling governmental interest," and must have narrowly tailored the law to achieve that interest.

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Voting Rights Act of 1965

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A law passed at the time of the civil rights movement. It eliminated various devices, such as literacy tests, that had traditionally been used to restrict voting by black people.

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Equality of Result

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a political concept which is central to some political ideologies and is used regularly in political discourse, often in contrast to the termequality of opportunity.

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Reasonableness or Rationality Standard

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a test which asks whether the decisions made were legitimate and designed to remedy a certain issue under the circumstances at the time. Courts using this standard look at both the ultimate decision, and the process by which a party went about making that decision.

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Open Housing Act of 1968 (Title VIII)

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prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental and financing of dwellings based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin.

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Quotas and Preferences

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Racial quotas in employment and education are numerical requirements for hiring, promoting, admitting and/or graduating members of a particular racial group.

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Jim Crow Laws

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When southern legislatures passed laws of racial segregation which were directed against blacks at the end of the 19th century, these statutes became known as Jim Crow laws.

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Higher Education Act of 1972 (Title IX)

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comprehensive federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity.

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Compensatory Action

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Helping disadvantaged people catch up, usually by giving them extra eduacation, training, or services.

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Equal Protection of the Laws

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A phrase in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution requiring that states guarantee the same rights, privileges, and protections to all citizens.

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Education of all Handicapped Children Act of 1975

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required all public schools accepting federal funds to provide equal access to education and one free meal a day for children with physical and mental disabilities.

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Compelling Government Interest

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In constitutional law, a method for determining the constitutionality of a statute that restricts the practice of a fundamental right or distinguishes between people due to a suspect classification.

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Separate but Equal

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racially segregated but ostensibly ensuring equal opportunities to all races.

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Voting Rights Act of 1982

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made Section 2 of the VRA permanent. This section of the bill prohibited the violation of voting rights by any practices that discriminated based on race, regardless of if the practices had been adopted with the intent to discriminate or not. This amendment of Section 2 had a significant impact on minority representation in Congress.

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Narrowly Tailored

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the legal principle that a law be written to specifically fulfill only its intended goals. This phrase is most commonly invoked in cases which involve racial discrimination by creating racial distinctions.

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With all Deliberate Speed

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While the NAACP lawyers had proposed to use the word "forthwith" to achieve an accelerated desegregation timetable, Chief Justice Earl Warren adopted Justice Felix Frankfurter's suggestion to use a phrase associated with the revered Oliver Wendell Holmes, "with all deliberate speed."

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Civil Rights Act of 1988

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a United States federal law that granted reparations to Japanese Americans who had been interned by the United States government during World War II.

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Concurring Opinion

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in certain legal systems a written opinion by one or more judges of a court which agrees with the decision made by the majority of the court, but states different (or additional) reasons as the basis for his or her decision.

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Segregation and Desegregation

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the action or state of setting someone or something apart from other people or things or being set apart.

the ending of a policy of racial segregation.

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American with Disabilities Act of 1990

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the nation's first comprehensive civil rights law addressing the needs of people with disabilities, prohibiting discrimination in employment, public services, public accommodations, and telecommunications.

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Dissenting Opinion

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an opinion in a legal case in certain legal systems written by one or more judges expressing disagreement with the majorityopinion of the court which gives rise to its judgment. When not necessarily referring to a legal decision, this can also be referred to as a minority report.

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Integration

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the action or process of integrating.

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Sexual Harassment

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harassment (typically of a woman) in a workplace, or other professional or social situation, involving the making of unwanted sexual advances or obscene remarks.

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Comparable Worth

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The idea that men and women should receive equal pay when they perform work that involves comparable skills and responsibility or that is of comparable worth to the employer; also known as pay equity. Many jobs are segregated by sex.

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De Jure Segregation

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separation enforced by law, while de facto segregation occurs when widespread individual preferences, sometimes backed up with private pressure, lead to separation.

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Equal Employment Opportunities Commission

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is a federal agency that administers and enforces civil rights laws against workplace discrimination.

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Defense of Marriage Act

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was a United States federal law that, prior to being ruled unconstitutional, defined marriage for federal purposes as the union of one man and one woman

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De Facto Segregation

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Racial segregation, especially in public schools, that happens “by fact” rather than by legal requirement

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Equal Rights Ammendment

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amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal rights for all citizens regardless of gender; it seeks to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment, and other matters.

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Civil Disobedience

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

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Right to Privacy

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an element of various legal traditions which may restrain both government and private party action that threatens the privacy of individuals.

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Civil Rights Act of 1957

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primarily a voting rights bill, was the first federal civil rights legislation passed by the United States Congress since the Civil Rights Act of 1875.

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Affirmative Action

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an action or policy favoring those who tend to suffer from discrimination, especially in relation to employment or education; positive discrimination.