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58 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
- 3rd side (hint)
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Natural rights
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a) Individuals are due certain rights by virtue of being human, regardless of who is in power.
Examples: The rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness b) These are enduring, and inalienable. |
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Cultural rights
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a) Certain individual rights exist by virtue of the shared beliefs and traditions existing within a given political and social culture.
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Rights and the US Constitution
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a) Certain individual rights exist because they are included in the Bill of Rights.
b) The Antifederalists initially feared entrusting power to a central government, even if this helped protect rights. c) James Madison drafted 17 amendments in 1789; 10 of them were ratified in 1791. |
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incorporation
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The doctrine through which the Supreme Court has held that the protections guaranteed by the Bill of
Rights limit not only the federal government but also the states. |
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Give some examples of when Individual rights sometimes clash with one another.
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1. The right of the religious to exercise their religion freely in public versus the right of atheists not to have
religion forced on them 2. A speaker’s right to free speech versus a listener’s right to be protected from harassment and slander 3. A person’s right to have, enjoy, or dispose of property versus public’s right to protect environmentally fragile areas 4. A fetus’ right to life versus a mother’s right to privacy |
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Why is it that rights are fragile and hard to protect?
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1. What are natural rights? There is no objective standard.
2. Cultural rights change as the culture changes. 3. Constitutional rights are subject to differences of interpretation and implementation. 4. Individual rights often clash. 5. Maintaining vital individual rights is an ongoing job for everyone. |
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The sources of individual rights in the United States are natural rights, cultural rights, and the Declaration of Independence.
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A. True
B. False |
B. False
The third source is the U.S. Constitution. The Declaration of Independence does not protect rights. |
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The philosophical basis of natural rights derives from the
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A. U.S. Constitution.
B. idea that all humans have rights based on their humanity. C. Declaration of Independence. D. the idea of a God-given law as specified in the Bible. |
B. idea that all humans have rights based on their humanity.
Natural rights are derived from the idea that humans are endowed with certain rights at birth. |
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Incorporation is the doctrine that
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A. all state constitutions must be exactly like the U.S. Constitution.
B. state law must be incorporated into the U.S. Constitution. C. corporations must guarantee that employees have certain rights. D. the Bill of Rights is automatically incorporated into all state law. |
D. the Bill of Rights is automatically incorporated into all state law. Incorporation means that most federal laws, including the Bill of Rights, now apply to states as well.
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One example of a conflict between individual rights is
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A. the right to hunt game and state hunting laws.
B. the right of free speech and the right of individuals to be protected from slander. C. the right of a person to have multiple spouses and the right of states to tax. D. the right to life and the right of states to impose the death penalty on criminals. |
B. the right of free speech and the right of individuals to be protected from slander.
Free speech does not protect slander. |
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James Madison is responsible for drafting the Bill of Rights.
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A. True
B. False |
A. True
Madison drafted 17 amendments. Ten were ratified in 1791 and became known as the Bill of Rights. |
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In the U.S., the debate over abortion focuses on:
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A. women's health.
B. unwanted pregnancy. C. the right to life. D. spousal abuse. |
C. the right to life.
In America, most debate is about the right to life and whether a fetus is a life. These questions are not the focus of the debate in many other countries. |
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The debate about abortion is different in the US than it is in other countries. Explain how.
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In other countries, the debate about abortion centers on women’s health, unwanted children, and abuse. In the
U.S., the debate centers on the fetus’ right to life. |
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Give some examples of how many constitutional provisions seemed to deny equality.
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a) American Indians were not counted as persons, and African-Americans were counted as threefifths
of a person. b) Northerners were prohibited from granting freedom to escaped slaves. c) Congress could not ban the importation of slaves until 1808. |
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What is the first mention of equality in the Constitution?
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The 14th Amendment (1868)
1. The equal protection clause is the first mention of equality in the Constitution. a) It formally established legal equality: No state shall “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” b) Its intent was to forbid unreasonable classifications. c) Determining which classifications are constitutionally valid can be difficult. |
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Equality in principle, not in reality
Racial equality |
• Slavery not abolished until the end of the Civil War and the ratification of the 13th Amendment in 1865.
• Legal segregation created a system of apartheid in the South that lasted until the mid-20th century. |
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Equality in principle, not in reality
Gender equality |
• Women were not given the right to vote until the 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920.
• Equal educational and employment opportunities were not available until the 20th century. • Women could not make decisions concerning fertility until the late 20th century. |
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Equality in principle, not in reality
Religious equality |
• Mormons were persecuted until they settled Utah.
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Equality in principle, not in reality
Equality of sexual orientation |
• Employment discrimination against gays and
lesbians still exists. • Gays are denied the right to marry in every state except Vermont. |
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Equality in principle, not in reality
Class equality |
• White, Christian males have had a monopoly on the highest American offices.
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Equality of opportunity
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Everyone should have the same chance to succeed regardless of race, gender, or religion.
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Equality of results
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Everyone should be equal in outcome.
Example: Women may have an equal opportunity to run for office, but there are very few female politicians. |
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Grandfather clauses
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(late 19th and early 20th centuries) stated that any male could vote as long as his
grandfather had voted. a) Every black citizen was thereby prohibited from voting and denied legal equality. |
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Some laws may seem to affirm equality, but lead to intentionally unequal results. Give examples.
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1. Grandfather clauses
2. Southern states passed laws stating that anyone who passed objective tests could attend the best schools. a) In reality, black schools did not have enough money to properly educate children for these tests. b) According to the courts, this law denied equality. |
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Other laws are not discriminatory, yet produce unequal results. Give examples.
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1. Wealthy parents offer their children a range of advantages: private schools, tutors, and summer travel.
2. Cultural beliefs may imply that certain jobs–which may have the most prestige and best salaries–are better suited to men than women. Example: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Sears for discriminating against women. a) Sears claimed that everyone had the opportunity to apply for any job. b) The Court agreed that equality of results could not be mandated. |
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Which of the following is NOT a way that the Constitution originally denied certain rights?
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A. It denied citizenship to immigrants.
B. It denied citizenship to Native Americans. C. It did not grant women the right to vote. D. It counted African-Americans as 3/5ths of a person. |
A. It denied citizenship to immigrants.
Although the Founders and many citizens of the colonies were themselves immigrants, the Constitution does not address immigration. |
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The word equality is first mentioned in the Constitution in
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A. the 14th Amendment.
B. the Bill of Rights. C. the Declaration of Independence. D. Marbury v. Madison. |
A. the 14th Amendment.
The 14th Amendment contains the equal protection clause, which is the first mention of equality in the Constitution. |
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Women were guaranteed the right to vote in the Bill of Rights.
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A. True
B. False |
B. False
Women did not secure the right to vote until the 19th amendment was ratified in 1920. |
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Legislation requiring equal access to employment regardless of race or gender is an example of
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A. equality of results.
B. equality of opportunity. C. unnecessary government intervention. D. unequal treatment of certain classes of people. |
B. equality of opportunity. These laws promote equal opportunity.
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A grandfather clause is a law that was written
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A. to allow a person to vote in place of his or her grandparent.
B. to force citizens to take tests before voting. C. to prevent African-American citizens from voting. D. to force the desegregation of schools. |
C. to prevent African-American citizens from voting.
Grandfather clauses stated that a male was qualified to vote as long as his grandfather had voted prior to 1867. This stipulation effectively prevented African-American males from voting in the 19th and early 20th century. |
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The fact that mainly white, Christian males have occupied the country’s highest offices conflicts with our notions of
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A. religious equality.
B. states rights. C. class equality. D. right to life. |
C. class equality.
White, Christian males represent a class of individuals. |
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How does the Constitution limit the ways people can be classified?
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The 14th Amendment (1868)
a) The equal protection clause: “No state shall . . . deny to any person within its jurisdiction, the equal protection of the laws.” |
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Slaughter-House Cases (1873)
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A group of stockyard owners, excluded from a state-sanctioned monopoly and
effectively put out of business, challenged the state on 14th Amendment grounds. 1. The Supreme Court declared that the equal protection clause was intended to apply only to discrimination against African-Americans. |
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African-Americans were not, in practice, protected against discrimination. How so?
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1. In the South, discrimination against former slaves continued, especially after federal troops were
removed after 1876. 2. In 1883, the Supreme Court disallowed a congressional act to ban discrimination in public places. 3. The South created a formal system of apartheid by passing Jim Crow laws that required racial segregation. |
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Jim Crow laws
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Laws from the 1870s to the 1950s that required the separation of whites from blacks in transportation,
schools, cemeteries, etc. “Jump Jim Crow” was the name of a 19th–century minstrel show and became a pejorative used to describe all blacks. |
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Three standards for equal protection analysis
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1. Rational relation
2. Strict scrutiny (race-discrimination claims) 3. Intermediate-level scrutiny (gender-discrimination claims) |
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Rational relation
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a) The standard: When classifying people, is the government’s action reasonably related to a
legitimate governmental purpose? b) Almost any action by national or state governments can be justified by this standard. c) Because this standard does not protect against racism, the Court developed the strict scrutiny standard. |
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Strict scrutiny
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(race-discrimination claims)
a) The standard: Is the government’s action necessary to further a compelling government interest? b) Korematsu v. United States (1944) introduced the strict scrutiny standard. c) In the 1950s, most laws that were tested against the strict scrutiny standard were found unconstitutional. |
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Korematsu v. United States
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During World War II, American citizens of Japanese descent were relocated to confinement
centers in the California desert. The government argued that this action was reasonable because it prevented Japanese espionage. The Supreme Court upheld the government’s order. |
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Intermediate-level scrutiny
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(gender-discrimination claims)
a) The standard: Is the government’s action substantially related to an important governmental objective? b) Craig v. Boren (1975) was the first case to apply this new standard. |
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Craig v. Boren
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A case involving a challenge to an Oklahoma statute allowing the sale of 3.2% beer to males over the
age of 21 but to females over the age of 18. |
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The Slaughterhouse Cases of the late 19th century ensured that the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment would be extended beyond civil rights cases.
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A. True
B. False |
B. False
The Court ruled that the 14th Amendment applied only to cases involving discrimination against African-Americans. |
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The rational relation basis for legal discrimination says that the government may permit discrimination against people if
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A. the discrimination furthers a compelling governmental interest.
B. the discrimination is substantially related to an important governmental objective. C. the discrimination serves a legitimate governmental purpose. D. the discrimination does not unduly harm anyone. |
C. the discrimination serves a legitimate governmental purpose.
This is the rational relation standard. Since the standard could apply to almost any governmental action, the Court developed other, stricter standards to protect citizens from their government. |
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The issue in Korematsu v. United States was the government’s relocation of Japanese-Americans to internment camps during World War II. The Supreme Court ruled that
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A. the government's action was illegal under the strict scrutiny standard.
B. the government's action was legal under the strict scrutiny standard. C. the government's action was illegal under the rational relation standard. D. the decision would be deferred until the end of World War II. |
B. the government's action was legal under the strict scrutiny standard.
The Court upheld the government's action based upon the argument that the forced internment of the citizens furthered a compelling government interest. This standard is the strict scrutiny standard. |
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Jim Crow laws
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A. required racial segregation in most of society.
B. were customary rules rather than formal legislation. C. required equal protection under the law. D. ended Reconstruction in the South. |
A. required racial segregation in most of society.
Jim Crow laws were laws passed after Reconstruction ended in the South. The laws required segregation in most aspects of society. |
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In Craig v. Boren, the Court ruled that a state may discriminate between males and females in its liquor laws.
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A. True
B. False |
B. False
The Court used the intermediate-level scrutiny standard to determine that statistics and generalities about gender-related drinking habits were too vague. It struck down an Oklahoma law that allowed 18-year-old females to purchase 3.2% beer, while forbidding males to purchase it until age 21. |
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Before Craig v. Boren, the Court consistently upheld gender discrimination laws based on
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A. the rational relation standard.
B. the strict scrutiny standard. C. the intermediate scrutiny standard. D. the strict construction standard. |
A. the rational relation standard.
Under the rational relation standard, the state has to show a legitimate government purpose. |
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When the Founders’ created the 1st Amendment, they did NOT want
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a) to ban religion from America
b) to create a national church like the Church of England, with mandatory membership and tax support c) to empower religious leaders (like Iran’s theocratic ayatollahs). |
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Give examples of how religion is pervasive in national and state government
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1. The motto “In God We Trust” appears on all U.S. currency.
2. Members of Congress begin their workdays with a prayer. 3. Justice William O. Douglas stated, “We [Americans] are a religious people whose institutions presuppose a Supreme Being.” |
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secular
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Not overtly or specifically religious.
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The Lemon Test
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1. The Lemon Test:
a) Is the law’s purpose to further religion? b) Is the law’s primary effect to inhibit or advance religion? c) Does the law create excessive entanglements between government and religion? Note: If any of the questions is answered affirmatively, the law is ruled unconstitutional. |
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The Court has declared the following forms of school-sponsored, organized prayer in public schools unconstitutional:
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a) nondenominational morning prayers (1962)
b) recitation of “The Lord’s Prayer” (1963) c) prayers at graduation (1992) d) prayers before sporting events (2000). |
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Regarding religious curriculum in the public schools, the Court has
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a) required the teaching of evolution (1968)
b) banned the teaching of creationism (1987). |
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The Court has also ruled that students in public schools may
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a) have access to the same resources as other groups
b) speak or write about religion c) gather to discuss, pray, or worship. |
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Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993
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1. Congress attempts to set a definitive standard for the Supreme Court to follow in judging the
constitutionality of religious actions 2. The Court, citing the Constitution’s separation-of-powers clause, ruled that Congress could not dictate legal standards to the Court. |
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separation of powers
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A system within a government in which the executive, legislative, and judicial branches are independent of each other.
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The establishment clause of the 1st Amendment guarantees that
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A. the government can establish a national church.
B. the federal government can appropriate tax revenue for specific churches. C. the federal government cannot establish a government-sponsored religion. D. the government cannot interfere in citizens' religious practices. |
C. the federal government cannot establish a government-sponsored religion.
The establishment clause prohibits governmental establishment or support for any religion. |
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