American Government Ch 5

The focus of civil liberties is the ________ and the focus of civil rights is the ________.

individuals; group

Disadvantaged Americans have generally gained their rights

through struggle against entrenched interests

Culminating in a historic victory in 1954, black activists in the early twentieth century generally pursued civil rights through

leagal action

The Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas ruling (1954) held that racial segregation in schools violated the

equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

A peak moment in the modern civil rights movement occurred with the March on Washington in ________.

1963

In the case of United States v. Virginia (1996), the Supreme Court ruled that

male-only admissions policies at state-supported military academies were unconstitutional.

Which statement about women’s rights is correct?

Women have made substantial gains in the areas of appointive and elective offices.

The movement for women’s rights was initially aligned with

the abolition movement.

All of the following statements about Latino Americans are true EXCEPT that

their average annual income is relatively close to the national average.

The average pay for full-time female employees is about ________ percent of that for full-time male employees.

80

Native Americans

a. today number more than 2 million. b. have a far higher infant mortality rate than the national average. c. have in recent years filed suit to reclaim their ancestral lands. d. are less than half as likely to finish college as other Americans.

All of the following statements about Asian American rights are true EXCEPT that

Asian Americans have the second highest median family income of any group.

Any law that attempts a racial or ethnic classification is subject to the

strict scrutiny test

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was aimed in large part at eliminating discrimination

by private individuals in their employment practices and in their operation of public accommodations (e.g., hotels, restaurants).

De jure discrimination and de facto discrimination are two ways in which some Americans are treated as less equal than others. Examples of public policies designed to address each of these forms of discrimination are

the Brown decision (de jure), and affirmative action (de facto).

In applying the reasonable basis test, courts tend to

require government only to show that a particular law is reasonable.

Housing in America

continues to evidence a high degree of racial segregation.

One example of a policy that aimed chiefly to overcome de facto discrimination is

busing to achieve racial integration in the schools.

The policy of affirmative action arose when

it became apparent that disadvantaged Americans would not attain equal employment opportunities through lawsuits that benefited single individuals only.

The Supreme Court’s decision in the Regents of the University of California v. Bakke case

upheld the principle of affirmative action.

One reason that affirmative action is so controversial is that

it is viewed as giving preferential treatment, which is unpopular, instead of simply ensuring equal treatment.

The Supreme Court halted the general use of quotas in the granting of federal contracts in the 1995 case of

Adarand v. Pena.

With regard to affirmative action, the Supreme Court in recent years has

moved to narrow its application.

The Supreme Court’s ruling in the Swann case on busing differed from the Brown decision in that Swann

a. addressed the problem of de facto discrimination. b. applied to many northern communities in addition to communities in the South. c. sanctioned the use of busing in desegregation. d. dealt specifically with the issue of busing.

Since the height of the busing era, the trend in public schools has been

towards greater segregation

Native Americans were not

given citizenship status en masse until the twentieth century.

The demand that women should receive equal pay relative to men for work that is similarly demanding, involves similar responsibilities, and requires similar levels of education and training is the basis of the concept of

comparable worth.

Which region of the world has the highest proportion of women serving in its national legislatures?

Scandinavia

According to Gunnar Myrdal, what is America’s curse?

racial discrimination

Women in America obtained the right to vote in national elections in ________.

1920

Asian Americans account for about ________ percent of professionals and technicians in the United States.

5

In 2007 the Supreme Court ruled that the pursuit of racial integration in public schools through busing

deprived white students of their Fourteenth Amendment right to equal protection.

Today, the majority of African Americans in the nation

live in neighborhoods where whites are in the minority.

How many states ratified the Equal Rights Amendment?

nearly 3/4ths

Which of the following would be considered the worst setback by affirmative action proponents?

Adarand v. Pena

What event occurred in 1877 in the South that brought about rapid legal discrimination against blacks?

the removal of federal troops

Which of the following statements is true?

About one in four single-parent families that are headed by women live below the poverty line.

The 1996 Defense of Marriage Act

authorizes states to deny marital rights to a same-sex couple that has been granted these rights by another state.

Which of the following statements is true of age discrimination in the United States?

Mandatory retirement ages for most jobs have been eliminated by law.

Equality of result policies are primarily directed at ________ discriminatory effects.

de facto

The central issue in the Bakke case was

affirmative action.

Which of the following is true?

a. Public schools are becoming more segregated nationally. b. Many urban public school districts have ended the use of busing for desegregation purposes. c. White flight to suburban schools has made it more difficult to desegregate urban schools. d. The Supreme Court, after ordering cutbacks in busing, said that communities were free to use alternatives, such as increased spending on schools in poor neighborhoods.

Today, women currently hold about ________ of the seats in Congress.

1 in 6

The Fourteenth Amendment applies to discriminatory action by

government only

Of the following states, which tends to have larger numbers of Caribbean Hispanics?

New Jersey

Native Americans were made "official" citizens of the United States in ________.

1924

Which of the following is true of discrimination against the disabled in the United States?

Before 1975, four million children with disabilities were getting either no education or an inappropriate one.

The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom

was conducted by African Americans seeking equality of rights.

What was politically significant about Geraldine Ferraro in 1984?

She became the first woman to run on the national ticket of a major political party.

In 2004, by order of the state’s Supreme Court, ________ instituted same-sex marriage.

Massachusetts

The first woman ever to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court was appointed by

President Regan

The first women’s rights convention in the United States was held in 1848 in

Seneca Falls, New York.

The famous speech featuring the words "I have a dream" in the civil rights movement was delivered by

Martin Luther King, Jr.

When the United States first came into being, married women were not permitted to

vote, hold office, serve in juries, own and dispense property without the husband’s consent.

Which one of the following occurred after the Brown decision?

a. Civil Rights Act of 1964 b. Voting Rights Act of 1965 c. 1957 Little Rock riots d. "I have a dream" speech

The Supreme Court concept of suspect classifications suggests that

laws that classify people differently on the basis of their race or ethnicity are presumed to have discrimination as their purpose.

Which of the following is true? (sex)

All are true; the Supreme Court ruled states could not adopt discriminatory policies toward gays and lesbians (1996), Boy Scouts can ban gays (2000), and states cannot ban homosexual relations among consenting adults (2003).

What is the equal protection clause? What three tests are associated with discrimination in law?

The equal protection clause is part of the Fourteenth Amendment, which reads in part that no state shall "deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." This clause has been used by the courts to protect minorities from discrimination. The tests associated with legal discrimination are the reasonable-basis test and the strict-scrutiny test. The first test stipulates that some inequalities (such as unequal tax rates for people of different income levels) are acceptable as long as they are related to legitimate government interests. The second test is premised on the belief that racial and ethnic-based classifications are unconstitutional almost by definition. There is a third form of judgment—an "intermediate" category, which has been used with regard to sex classifications, and is less rigid than the strict-scrutiny test but more rigid than the reasonable-basis test. For example, the exclusion of women from the military draft has been judged by the courts to be constitutional, whereas most other forms of gender discrimination in law have been judged unconstitutional.

Describe the provisions and impact of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968.

The 1964 Civil Rights Act entitles all persons to equal access to restaurants, bars, theatres, hotels, gasoline stations, and similar establishments serving the general public. It also bars discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in the hiring, promotion, and wages of employees of medium-size and large firms. However, this legislation did not immediately result in equality of opportunity of hiring practices. The Act did not require employers to prove that their employment practices were not discriminatory, and many continued to give preferential treatment to white males. The concentration of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 was equality in housing. To prevent discrimination in housing, this act prevented building owners from refusing to sell or rent housing because of a person’s race, religion, ethnicity, or sex. An exception is allowed for owners of small multifamily dwellings who reside on the premises.

What is affirmative action? What is the Supreme Court’s general position on affirmative action?

Affirmative action is a deliberate effort to counteract de facto discrimination and provide full and equal opportunity in areas such as education and employment for traditionally disadvantaged groups. This policy attempts to require providers of opportunities to show that their policies are not discriminatory. The Supreme Court has limited the application of affirmative action. In general, the Supreme Court has allowed practices seeking to redress instances of discrimination unless those practices infringe on the rights of individuals or unless they involve the strict use of quotas.

Discuss the racial problems addressed by the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas decision and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. What provisions of the Constitution provided the basis for each of these policy decisions?

In Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954), the Supreme Court justices overturned the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson ruling. Chief Justice Warren stated that segregated schools were inherently unequal, and thus violated the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Chief Justice Warren stated that the maintenance of separate school systems generates feelings of social inferiority on the part of minority students. Because the Fourteenth Amendment applies only to acts of government, private firms are not affected by it. In the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Congress used its commerce power to entitle all persons equal access to establishments serving the general public, and to forbid discrimination in hiring, promotion, and payment of employees in medium and large firms. Congress’s commerce power was utilized to restrict discrimination in public places and employment.

What is equality of result? What relation does it have to de facto and de jure discrimination?

Equality of result is the aim of policies intended to reduce or eliminate discriminatory effects so that members of traditionally disadvantaged groups may obtain the same benefits of society as members of traditionally advantaged groups. De facto discrimination is discrimination that is a consequence of social, economic, and cultural biases and conditions. De jure discrimination is discrimination based on law. Equality of result is intended to combat the effects of de facto discrimination. Busing and affirmative action are examples of policies designed to achieve equality of result. Many Americans, however, believe that the government should only address de jure discrimination.