VOLUME 3: EQUAL PROTECTION AND CIVIL RIGHTS

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

University of California v. Bakke

Student Bakke sued the University of California for reverse discrimination as an effect of affirmative action in this landmark case

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber

This was the first Supreme Court case to address the issue of affirmative action programs in employment

Fullilove v. Klutznick

This case questioned the constitutionality of minority ``set-asides'' for federally funded work

Metro Broadcasting v. FCC

The question of whether federal programs designed to increase minority ownership of broadcast licenses violated the principle of equal protection was central to this case

ASSISTED SUICIDE/ RIGHT TO DIE

Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Dept. of Health

This case marked the first time that the Supreme Court entered into the debate surrounding the right to die argument

Vacco v. Quill

This ruling provided constitutional support to state laws banning physician assisted suicide

Washington v. Glucksburg

The Court ruled that the State of Washington could ban assisted suicide and it did not deny the constitutional rights of the terminally ill

CIVIL RIGHTS AND EQUAL PROTECTION

United States v. Cinque

The slaves of the transport ship Amistad were the focal point of this equal protection case

Prigg v. Pennsylvania

This ruling confirmed that federal laws take precedence over state laws when regulating the same activity

Ableman v. Booth

This decision emphasized the independence of state and federal courts from one another

Civil Rights Cases

The decisions in these cases nearly reverse all the work that had been done during Reconstruction to grant African Americans equal rights

Yick Wo v. Hopkins

The Supreme Court proclaimed that even if a law was non-discriminatory, enforcing the law in a discriminatory fashion made it unconstitutional

Korematsu v. United States

This case is the only case in Supreme Court history in which the Court upheld a restriction on civil liberties

Boynton v. Virginia

For the first time, the federal government sent a clear message that interstate facilities were for the use of all citizens of all colors

Monroe v. Pape

Because of the warrantless search of their home by police, which included demeaning treatment of the entire family the Monroe family brought suit against the city of Chicago and the police officers involved in the search

Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States

This case marked a turning point in Congress' efforts to promote civil rights through use of it's power to regulate interstate commerce

Loving v. Virginia

This case established that under the Equal Protection Clause, as state cannot regulate marriages because the partners are of different skin color, religions or national origins

Reed v. Reed

This was the first time in the Fourteenth Amendment's 103-year history that the Supreme Court ruled that its Equal Protection Clause protected women's rights

GENDER DISCRIMINATION AND SEXUAL HARASSMENT

Minor v. Happersett

Minor v. Happersett marked the second time in two years that the Supreme Court refused to include women's rights under the protection of the Fourteenth Amendment

Michael M. v. Superior Court of Sonoma County

The Court allowed for a sex-based bias in the consideration of legislation regarding sexual offenses in this case

Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan

The Court determined that men are entitled to protection under the same anti-bias laws as women

Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson

This case raised many important questions about sexual harassment in the workplace

Automobile Workers v. Johnson Controls

This decision gave women the opportunity to make their own decisions about pregnancy and dangerous work

United States v. Virginia (VMI)

With this decision, the last two state-supported, all-male colleges were forced to admit women, or lose their state funding

Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services Inc.

This ruling recognized that individuals have the right to file sexual harassment complaints against employers based on same-sex sexual harassment claims

REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

Buck v. Bell

The Court ruled that the state had the right to mandate the sterilization of women based on their mental capacity

Eisenstadt v. Baird

This decision made contraceptives legally available to unmarried people throughout the United States

Roe v. Wade

This landmark decision gave women the right to legal, safe abortions

Planned Parenthood of Central Missouri v. Danforth

This decision called for requirements that women inform their spouses or parents before obtaining an abortion

Planned Parenthood of SE Pennsylvania v. Casey

A Pennsylvania law regulating abortions was brought before the Court to determine if it placed and undue burden on the women of that state

RIGHTS OF IMMIGRANTS, GAYS, LESBIANS AND THE DISABLED

Truax v. Raich

The Supreme Court established the right to earn a living as a basic freedom not to be withheld from resident aliens

O'Connor v. Donaldson

This case questioned whether or not it was a violation of one's constitutional rights to be held in an institution against their will just because they are mentally ill

Plyler v. Doe

With this decision, states could no longer withhold public education from children simply because they were illegal aliens

Cleburn v. Cleburn Living Center

This case centered around the city of Cleburn's refusal to give a zoning permit to a group wanting to open a group home for the mentally ill

Bowers v. Hardwick

In this ruling, the Supreme Court retreated from its earlier position that consensual sexual activity that is not obscene was protected by a constitutional right to privacy

Romer v. Evans

For the first time, the Supreme Court gave homosexuals constitutional protection against government or private discrimination

SEGREGATION AND DESEGREGATION

Plessy v. Ferguson

Famous case where the Court ruled that ``separate but equal'' was constitutional

Shelley v. Kraemer

The Court ruled that neighborhoods could create real estate covenants to keep certain groups from buying property, but neither state nor federal courts could enforce them

Brown v. Board of Education

In a landmark case, the Court ruled that separate is not equal, and put an end to school segregation

Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education

This case was important for its endorsement of school busing as a means of achieving racial integration

VOTING RIGHTS

Baker v. Carr

This case made it possible for unrepresented voters to have their districts redrawn by federal courts

Reynolds v. Sims

This case exposed that at least one house of most state legislatures were unconstitutional. Within two years, the boundaries of legislative districts had been redrawn all across the nation

Buckley v. Valeo

The Court changed campaign finance laws by ruling that there could be no restrictions on contributions from individuals and groups, so long as they were independent of any official election campaigns