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Influential Legal Cases in Civil Rights
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Brown v. Board of Education, 1954
Impact: Landmark ruling that ended racial segregation in public schools. Decision: Unanimous decision stating that 'separate but equal' is unconstitutional in the context of public education.
Roe v. Wade, 1973
Impact: Established a woman's legal right to an abortion. Decision: The Supreme Court ruled that state laws prohibiting abortion were unconstitutional based on the right to privacy.
Loving v. Virginia, 1967
Impact: Invalidated state laws prohibiting interracial marriage. Decision: Unanimous decision that Virginia's anti-miscegenation statutes violated both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896
Impact: Affirmed the constitutionality of racial segregation under the 'separate but equal' doctrine. Decision: 7-1 decision upholding the legislative act requiring segregated railway carriages.
Gideon v. Wainwright, 1963
Impact: Extended the right to counsel to all criminal defendants in state courts. Decision: Unanimous decision holding that the Sixth Amendment's right to counsel is a fundamental right applicable to the states via the 14th Amendment.
Obergefell v. Hodges, 2015
Impact: Guaranteed the right to marry for same-sex couples nationwide. Decision: 5-4 decision that same-sex marriage bans violate both the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the 14th Amendment.
Shelley v. Kraemer, 1948
Impact: Ruled that racially restrictive housing covenants could not be enforced by courts. Decision: Court held that such covenants violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
Miranda v. Arizona, 1966
Impact: Established Miranda rights, requiring police to inform detainees of their right to remain silent and obtain an attorney. Decision: Supreme Court held that the Fifth Amendment's protection against self-incrimination extends to police interrogation of a suspect.
University of California v. Bakke, 1978
Impact: Upheld affirmative action, allowing race to be one of several factors in college admission policy. Decision: 5-4 decision holding that a university's use of racial 'quotas' in its admissions process was unconstitutional but that affirmative action programs could be constitutional.
Dred Scott v. Sandford, 1857
Impact: Declared that African Americans could not be American citizens and negated the authority of the federal government to regulate slavery in the territories. Decision: 7-2 decision against Dred Scott, holding that he remained a slave.
Civil Rights Cases, 1883
Impact: Limited the scope of the Civil Rights Act of 1875, ruling that the 14th Amendment did not empower Congress to outlaw racial discrimination by private individuals. Decision: Court declared that the Act was unconstitutional as it applied to private acts of discrimination.
Korematsu v. United States, 1944
Impact: Upheld the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Decision: 6-3 decision that the need to protect against espionage outweighed Fred Korematsu's individual rights.
Reed v. Reed, 1971
Impact: For the first time, the Supreme Court applied the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to sex discrimination. Decision: Unanimous decision holding that administrators of estates cannot be named in a way that discriminates between sexes.
Sweatt v. Painter, 1950
Impact: Challenged the 'separate but equal' doctrine and led to the desegregation of graduate and professional schools. Decision: Unanimous decision holding that separate professional schools for blacks failed to meet the standard of equality.
Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. v. United States, 1964
Impact: Upheld the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ensuring that businesses could not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin. Decision: Unanimous decision that Congress could use the Commerce Clause to fight discrimination.
Grutter v. Bollinger, 2003
Impact: Upheld the affirmative action admissions policy of the University of Michigan Law School. Decision: 5-4 decision ruling that the University's use of race as a factor in admissions to achieve student body diversity did not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 1978
Impact: Ruled against fixed racial quotas but allowed race to be considered a factor in admissions. Decision: Split decision that Allan Bakke must be admitted to the University of California Medical School at Davis, and that racial quotas were invalid.
New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 1964
Impact: Established the high standard of proving 'actual malice' for press reports about public officials to be considered defamation. Decision: Unanimous decision holding that the First Amendment protects the publication of all statements about public officials unless they are made with actual malice.
Lawrence v. Texas, 2003
Impact: Invalidated sodomy laws in the United States, affirming the rights of privacy and equality for LGBTQ individuals. Decision: 6-3 decision holding that the state law criminalizing private homosexual activity between consenting adults is unconstitutional.
Marbury v. Madison, 1803
Impact: Established the principle of judicial review, empowering the Supreme Court to nullify an act of the legislative or executive branch that violates the Constitution. Decision: Unanimous decision that Secretary of State James Madison's refusal to deliver the commission was illegal, but ultimately the Court lacked jurisdiction.
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