Reclaim Civil Rights

Within a year after the Civil War, the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, banning slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States.

Nearly two years after Congressional approval, the Fourteenth amendment to the Constitution is ratified, which guarantees state and national citizenship to all persons born in the U.S., and states that '[n]o state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.'

The Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, amending the Constitution to deny both the federal government and the states power to deprive U.S. citizens of the right to vote on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

The Supreme Court holds that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution does not protect citizens against discrimination by the states.

In a challenge to the Illinois State Bar's denial of admission to Myra Bradwell on account of her being a woman, the Supreme Court again decides the "privileges and immunities clause" of the Fourteenth Amendment does not protect individuals from employment discrimination. In his concurring opinion, Justice Joseph Bradley writes that the "paramount destiny" of a woman is to "fulfill the noble and benign offices of wife and mother.

The Supreme Court deals a blow to Congress' ability to enforce the promise of the Fourteenth Amendment by declaring that Congress does not have the authority to enact provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 that banned discrimination by private individuals and organizations.

The Supreme Court upholds the constitutionality of state-sponsored racial segregation in public accommodations under the doctrine of "separate but equal," (the idea that segregation based on race was legal so long as facilities were of equal quality), thereby enshrining decades of Jim Crow in the South.

The Supreme Court overturns a New York statute restricting the number of hours an employer can demand of his or her employees, ushering in a nearly 30 year period in which the Court uses the Fourteenth Amendment to ensure that employers are not disadvantaged by legislation to protect workers' rights.

After more than 70 years of persistent efforts to enfranchise women, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, enshrining in the Constitution that the right to vote cannot be denied or abridged on account of sex. Adoption of the 19th Amendment represents the largest permanent expansion of the voting electorate in American history.

During President Franklin Roosevelt's first term, Congress passes the National Labor Relations Act, guaranteeing workers the right to a join a union, engage in collective bargaining, and strike without fear of retaliation from management.

Reversing itself in the infamous Lochner decision of 1905, the Supreme Court upholds the government's power to establish a minimum wage for workers, placing the Court on the side of workplace fairness in the wake of the Great Depression.

Although a case dealing with milk legislation, the Supreme Court's decision in U.S. v. Carolene Products Co. contains what many consider to be the most famous footnote in Constitutional law. Footnote four of Justice Harlon Stone's opinion declares that laws that remedy injustice for "discrete and insular minorities" by favoring one group over another are permissible because they protect people who have limited access to the political process.

Signed into law by President Roosevelt in his second term, the Fair Labor Standards Act establishes a federal minimum wage, as well as guaranteed "time and a half' for overtime.

On the eve of World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs Executive Order 8802 prohibiting government contractors from engaging in employment discrimination based on race, color or national origin. The order, however, has no enforcement provisions.

The Supreme Court holds that United States citizens can be relocated to detention camps solely on the basis of their race, ethnicity or national origin, thus validating the internment of approximately 110,000 Japanese and Japanese-Americans living in the United States. In his dissent, Supreme Court Justice Frank Murphy writes that the internment "goes over 'the very brink of constitutional power' and falls into the ugly abyss of racism.

President Harry S. Truman bans racial segregation in the armed services.

In a critical decision, the Supreme Court rules that Mexican Americans and other racial groups in the United States are entitled to equal protection of the law by the Fourteenth Amendment.

The Supreme Court overturns earlier rulings going back to Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, declaring the establishment by state law of separate public schools for black and white students inherently unequal. The Warren Court's unanimous decision states, in no uncertain terms, that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal,' and therefore violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Congress passes its first major civil rights law since Reconstruction, establishing both the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, as well as authorizing the Attorney General to seek injunctions and file civil suits in voting rights cases. Although widely criticized for lacking teeth, the creation of a Civil Rights Division importantly initiates the creation of a federal civil rights legal infrastructure.

Nine African-American students desegregate Little Rock Central High School. In an historic show of federal commitment to integration, President Dwight Eisenhower orders the Battle Group of the elite 101st Airborne Division of the United States Army to Little Rock, and federalizes the entire 10,000 member Arkansas National Guard in order to ensure integration and the dismantling of "separate but equal" schools in Little Rock.

The Supreme Court rules that the creation of electoral districts by the Alabama state legislature that diminish the voting power of African American voters in Tuskegee, Alabama violates the Fifteenth Amendment. The case represents a major step forward for the Supreme Court in its willingness to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment's protections against vote denial on the basis of race.

President Kennedy creates the Committee on Equal Employment and mandates that projects financed with federal funds "take affirmative action" to ensure that hiring and employment practices are free of racial bias. The order represents a critical step by the federal government to remedy centuries of racial discrimination.

The 23rd Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, granting residents of the District of Columbia electoral votes in presidential elections.

The Supreme Court rules that courts can direct legislatures to redraw district boundaries to ensure citizens' political rights. The Court's decision marks a major step forward for minority voting rights by permitting future courts to ensure that legislative district lines fairly protect the political interests of all voters.

Congress bans discrimination in pay on the basis of sex.

The 24th Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, enshrining in the Constitution that the right of citizens to vote in federal elections cannot be denied based on an individual's failure to pay a poll tax or any other kind of tax. Critically, the 24th Amendment would help dismantle discriminatory election schemes used to deny minorities the right to vote.

Noting that "the right to exercise the franchise in a free and unimpaired manner is preservative of other basic civil and political rights," the Supreme Court strikes down Alabama legislative boundaries that had not been changed since 1900, establishing the principle of one person, one vote for state legislative redistricting.

Congress enacts the Civil Rights Act of 1964, dealing a critical blow to segregation and providing enforceable rights to victims of discrimination. Specifically, the Act bans discrimination in public accommodations and employment, and bars discrimination in federally funded programs on the bases of race, sex and national origin.

Congress passes the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which outlaws literacy tests and other discriminatory 'tests and devices' used to determine the qualifications of citizens to vote, provides for federal registration of voters in areas where less than 50% of eligible minority voters are registered, and requires that states with a history of denying the right to vote to minority voters must clear changes to voting laws with the federal government. The Voting Rights Act's enforcement structure also gives private citizens the right to sue individuals and municipalities that engage in unlawful voting discrimination.

The Supreme Court upholds the Constitutionality of the recently passed Voting Rights Act. Noting that the enforcement clause of the Fifteenth Amendment gave Congress "full remedial powers" to prevent racial discrimination in voting, the Supreme Court declares the Act was a "legitimate response" to the "insidious and pervasive evil," which had denied blacks the right to vote since the Fifteenth Amendment's adoption in 1870.

The Supreme Court holds that Congress can prohibit the use of certain literacy tests for voter eligibility even though the Supreme Court had held that such tests did not violate the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection clause. In his majority opinion, Justice William Brennan stresses that section 5 of the fourteenth amendment is "a positive grant of legislative power authorizing Congress to exercise its discretion in determining the need for and nature of legislation to secure Fourteenth Amendment guarantees.

The Supreme Court strikes down a Virginia law making it illegal for any white person in the state to marry outside the Caucasian race.

Congress prohibits employment discrimination against persons 40 years and older.

Congress bans discrimination in the sale, rental, or financing of housing based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The statute is subsequently amended in 1988 to prohibit discrimination based on disability or family status.

The United Nations adopts the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD), obligating nations who sign on to the agreement to submit regular reports on their work to eliminate racial discrimination within their borders. In drafting the CERD, world leaders adopt a view that policies and laws that have a discriminatory impact are impermissible in the fight to rid the world of racial discrimination. The U.S. does not ratify the convention until 1994.

The Supreme Courts rejects the use of aptitude tests in employment that unfairly impact minority applicants and are not 'reasonably related' to the job for which the test is required, as a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The Supreme Court holds that busing is an appropriate remedy for the problem of racial imbalance among schools, even where the imbalance results from the selection of students based on geographic proximity to the school rather than from deliberate assignment based on race.

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court rules that laws stipulating an arbitrary requirement of unequal treatment between men and women are unconstitutional under the Equal Protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Congress prohibits any person in the United States from being excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination on the basis of sex under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.

Congress sends the Equal Rights Amendment to the States for ratification. The amendment would create a clear constitutional requirement of equality based on sex. Although 22 states ratify the amendment within one year, ultimately, supporters fall three states short of the 38 needed to amend the constitution.

Congress bans discrimination against people with disabilities in programs conducted by Federal agencies, programs receiving federal financial assistance, federal employment, and the employment practices of federal contractors.

In this challenge to an unequal state educational funding system, the Supreme Court holds that a school-financing system based on local property taxes is not an unconstitutional violation of the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection clause. The majority opinion states that education is not a fundamental right under the constitutional and thus the financing system is not subject to strict scrutiny.

The Supreme Court holds that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects the rights of people who are limited English proficient, ruling that language-based discrimination is a proxy for national origin discrimination.

The Supreme Court limits the scope of its own 1971 decision in Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Bd. of Ed. by ruling that busing can only extend across district lines when there is actual evidence that all of the districts impacted have engaged in a deliberate policy of segregation.

Congress reauthorizes the Voting Rights Act's temporary provisions and extends the legislation's permanent ban on literacy tests nationwide. The new law declares that "English-only" elections in Texas, Arizona, and Alaska are the equivalent of literacy tests, and thus those three states are brought under the Voting Rights Act's preclearance provision. In addition, the 1975 amendments mandate that language assistance be provided in jurisdictions with significant concentrations of citizens who do not understand English well.

Congress bans age discrimination in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance.

Recognizing the importance of providing private citizens with access to federal courts, Congress passes legislation that allows Federal Courts to award reasonable attorneys fees to prevailing parties in certain civil rights cases.

The Supreme Court holds that under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, "[an] official action will not be held unconstitutional solely because it results in a racially disproportionate impact." Instead, a plaintiff must prove discriminatory motive on the state actor's part in order to establish a constitutional violation. The Court noted that "disproportionate impact is not irrelevant, but it is not the sole touchstone of an invidious racial discrimination forbidden by the Constitution.'"

The Supreme Court upholds the constitutionality of university affirmative action programs, finding 'diversity' to be a compelling state interest in university admissions. While the decision outlaws 'quotas,' (and struck down the medical school admissions plan at issue in the case) it made clear that race can be one among numerous factors considered in the admissions process.

The Supreme Court narrowly interprets the Voting Rights Act's prohibition against denying the right to vote on account of race or ethnicity by ruling that voters must prove racially discriminatory intent in order to establish a violation of the Act.

Congress reauthorizes the Voting Rights Act's requirement that certain states obtain pre-approval for all voting changes (Section 5) for 25 years and its language assistance provision (Section 203) for 10 years. At the same time, Congress amends the Act to make clear that a violation of Section 2's prohibition against discrimination can be established by proving discriminatory effect alone, rather than having to show discriminatory purpose, thus overturning the Supreme Court's decision in Mobile v. Bolden. Congress also allows jurisdictions to "bailout" from the pre-approval provision when they can show a 10 year record of no discrimination.

The Supreme Court upholds the IRS rule that private schools with racially discriminatory admissions policies are not entitled to federal tax exemption.

The Supreme Court upholds the constitutionality of a Georgia sodomy law that criminalizes oral and anal sex in private between consenting adults.

In response to the Supreme Court's ruling in Grove City College v. Bell, Congress specifies that recipients of federal funds must comply with civil rights laws in all areas of their operation, not just the particular programs or activities that receive direct funding.

Congress strengthens the Fair Housing Act's enforcement procedures and adds protections for individuals with disabilities and families with children.

The Supreme Court limits the ability of individuals to prove employment discrimination when it rules that in order to prevail in court under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employees must identify their employer's specific discriminatory policies that, in isolation, had a discriminatory effect, rather than simply show the effect itself.

The Supreme Court strikes down a Richmond, Va. plan to set aside construction funds for minority-owned firms, holding that the city had failed to demonstrate a compelling interest in handing out public contracting opportunities on the basis of race. In its decision, the Court rejects Richmond's claim that past societal discrimination alone can serve as the basis for the program.

The Supreme Court limits the ability of individuals to prove employment discrimination, holding that even when an employee proves that discrimination was a factor in an employment decision, the employer can avoid liability by establishing that it would have made the same decision in the absence of the discrimination.

Congress passes the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination based on disability, providing equal opportunity for persons with disabilities in employment, state and local government services, public accommodations, commercial facilities, and transportation. The Act also mandates the establishment of TDD/telephone relay services.

Congress overturns a string of decisions issued by the Supreme Court in 1989 that had limited the rights of employees to prevail in court when discriminated against by their employers.

The language minority provision of the Voting Rights Act (Section 203) is extended for 15 years and strengthened by adjusting the population thresholds to require language assistance for more voters who do not speak or understand English well.

Congress passes, and President Bill Clinton signs into law, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, which allows certain workers to take up to 3 months of unpaid leave due to a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform his or her job, to care for a sick family member, or to care for a new son or daughter (including by birth, adoption or foster care).

By passing the 'Motor Voter' Act, Congress makes registering to vote more accessible for all Americans by allowing voters to register by mail when applying for a driver's license, as well as at other state agencies such as welfare and unemployment offices.

The Supreme Court holds that North Carolina's 12th congressional district, which had recently elected the first African American from North Carolina to Congress since Reconstruction, is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander in violation of the 14th amendment. According to the majority opinion, although North Carolina's redistricting plan was racially neutral on its face, the shape of the 12th congressional district was so 'bizarre' as to suggest that it constituted an effort to separate voters into different districts based on race. After concluding that the residents' claim did give rise to an equal protection challenge, the Supreme Court sends the case back to the lower court for their consideration of whether or not some compelling governmental interest justified North Carolina's plan.

The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, overturns a District Court ruling that had required the state of Missouri to correct de facto racial inequality in schools by funding salary increases and remedial education programs. The Court's majority interprets Brown v. Board of Education as restricting only de jure segregation, and refers to Milliken v. Bradley and other precedents as applying only to intra-district desegregation.

The Supreme Court holds that Congress can only require a state to pay money damages as part of the remedy in a lawsuit when it is necessary to enforce the rights guaranteed under the 14th Amendment.

The Supreme Court strikes down the male-only admissions policy at the Virginia Military Institute and declares that all gender-biased admissions policies at public universities are unconstitutional under the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

The Supreme Court holds that Colorado cannot amend its constitution to stop local jurisdictions from preventing discrimination based on sexual orientation.

The Supreme Court holds that students who are sexually harassed must show that the school had 'actual notice' of the harassment and was 'deliberately indifferent' to it in order to recover money damages. This new rule sets a much higher bar than exists under Title VII for the protection of employees from sexual harassment.

The Supreme Court holds that state workers cannot recover money damages when their employers violate the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The Supreme Court rules that the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 does not allow victims of age discrimination to recover money damages from state employers. This new rule strips older state employees who are victims of age discrimination of the ability to obtain a meaningful remedy under federal law.

The Supreme Court rules, 5-4, that the only relevant test under the federal pre-approval provisions of the Voting Rights Act (Section 5) is whether the voters in question are made worse off by the voting change. Thus, the fact that a voting change was purposefully discriminatory and violates the U.S. Constitution is not enough to block its implementation.

President Bill Clinton signs an executive order, 'Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency," that requires all federal agencies to make their services accessible to persons who don't understand English well.

The Supreme Court rules that employers may require employees to sign mandatory arbitration agreements as a condition of employment, thus forcing workers to choose between their jobs and the ability to have their future discrimination claims heard by a judge.

The Supreme Court holds, 5-4, that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlaws discrimination by recipients of federal financial assistance, does not permit individuals to sue to stop an apparently neutral practice that has a discriminatory impact.

The Supreme Court holds that a party in a lawsuit can only recover attorneys' fees if that party wins a judgment by a court. Thus, if a judge finds that one party's action, including litigation, causes another party to voluntarily provide the relief requested in the lawsuit, it is not enough to trigger the fee-shifting statute. This new rule creates a significant disincentive against settlement of civil rights cases.

The Supreme Court holds that Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against a qualified person with a disability, is unconstitutional insofar as it allows states to be sued by private citizens for money damages.

The Supreme Court rules that undocumented workers cannot obtain lost wages under the National Labor Relations Act when they are fired or reprimanded for union activity, despite the Fourteenth Amendment's protection of equal treatment and due process under the law for all 'persons.'

The Supreme Court rules that 'diversity' is a compelling governmental interest in university admissions, affirming the Court's earlier decision in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke. At the same time, the Court holds that while the University of Michigan's point-based admissions system that takes race into account is unconstitutional because it is too "mechanical," the use of race as a factor in admissions by the law school is narrowly tailored, and thus constitutional.

The Supreme Court interprets Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act to allow pre-approval of redistricting plans that diminish a minority community's ability to elect its candidates of choice, as long as the overall "influence" of that community is not diminished. This decision opens the doors to the potential for diminishment of nearly 40 years of progress under the Voting Rights Act.

The Supreme Court strikes down a Texas statute banning homosexual sodomy, overturning its own 1986 decision in Bowers v. Hardwick. In its decision, the Court recognizes that laws that criminalize homosexual activity are banned under the Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of liberty and due process under the law.

The Supreme Court upholds Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which states that no one can be denied access to public services due to his or her disability and allows those whose rights have been violated to sue states for money damages

Congress extends the temporary provisions of the Voting Rights Act for 25 years and rejects the Supreme Court's rulings in Reno v. Bossier Parish School Board and Georgia v. Ashcroft by making clear that changes to voting districts that are motivated by a discriminatory purpose or that reduce the ability of minority communities to elect their candidates of choice should not be approved.

The Supreme Court holds, 5-4, that victims of pay discrimination must file a complaint with the EEOC within 180 days of when the employer made its initial discriminatory pay decision, rather than within 180 of the employee's last discriminatory paycheck.

In a case involving whether local school districts can consider race or ethnicity as a factor in making assignment decisions in public school systems, the Supreme Court, while affirming that educational diversity remains a compelling governmental interest, holds that neither plan at issue in the case-- in Seattle, WA and Louisville, KY-- is narrowly tailored, thus both are held unconstitutional.