Equal Protection of the Law
Key Terms
rational basis test, suspect classification,
fundamental right, discrimination, Jim Crow laws,
separate but equal doctrine, civil rights movement
Find Out
• What is the constitutional meaning of
“equal protection”?
• How has the Court applied the Fourteenth
Amendment’s equal protection clause to the
issue of discrimination?
Equal Protection of the Law
Understanding Concepts
Constitutional Interpretations Why do Supreme
Court decisions in discrimination cases rest largely
on the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments?
Section Objective
Explain the concept of “equal protection” and
the tests by which the Supreme Court
determines discrimination.
In 1957, President Dwight Eisenhower sent
federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, to
enforce court-ordered desegregation of
Central High School. He took this action
even though he did not believe the Supreme
Court’s ruling in Brown v. Board of
Education could effectively end segregation.
As he told an adviser, “I am convinced that
the Supreme Court decision set back
progress in the South at least fifteen years.”
I. Meaning of Equal Protection (pages 406–407)
A. Both the Fourteenth Amendment and the
Fifth Amendment require that all people are
entitled to equal rights and equal protection
of the law.
B. The Supreme Court has developed
guidelines for deciding when state laws may
violate the equal protection clause.
C. According to the rational basis test, the
Court will uphold state laws that distinguish
among different groups of people if the state
shows good reason for those classifications.
I. Meaning of Equal Protection (pages 406–407)
D. Classifications in state laws based on race
or national origin are a suspect
classification; the state must show some
compelling public interest to justify them.
E. State laws that violate fundamental
rights—the right to vote and First
Amendment rights—are unconstitutional.
I. Meaning of Equal Protection (pages 406–407)
What guidelines has the Supreme Court
drawn up for considering when a state law or
action might violate the equal protection
clause of the Fifth Amendment?
See rational basis test, suspect classification,
and fundamental rights text pages 406–407.
II. Proving Intent to Discriminate (pages 407–408)
A. Discriminatory laws classify people solely
because of their race, gender, ethnic group,
age, physical disability, or religion.
B. To prove a state or local government guilty
of discrimination, one must prove the
state’s intent to discriminate.
II. Proving Intent to Discriminate (pages 407–408)
In what ways has discrimination been
lessened in this country and in what ways is
it still a serious problem?
Answers will vary. See Court discrimination
cases on text page 408.
III. The Struggle for Equal Rights (pages 408–410)
A. For nearly a century after the Fourteenth
Amendment was adopted, the courts upheld
discrimination and segregation against
African Americans.
B. In Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), the Supreme
Court used the “separate but equal” doctrine
to justify segregation in the United States.
C. In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the
Court overruled the “separate but equal”
doctrine and touched off a long struggle to
desegregate public schools.
III. The Struggle for Equal Rights (pages 408–410)
D. Civil rights workers peacefully broke laws
supporting racial segregation; protesters
who were arrested and convicted then
appealed, challenging the constitutionality of
these laws in the courts.
E. Influenced by the civil rights movement led
by Martin Luther King, Jr., Congress passed
major civil rights legislation to ensure voting
rights and equal job opportunities such as
the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
III. The Struggle for Equal Rights (pages 408–410)
III. The Struggle for Equal Rights (pages 408–410)
Compare the results of the Supreme
Court’s decisions in Plessy v. Ferguson
(1896) and Brown v. Board of Education
of Topeka (1954).
The Plessy case was used to justify segregation,
Brown marked the beginning of desegregation.
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use the graphic organizer below to
analyze why the Supreme Court overturned the
separate but equal doctrine and what effects
followed that decision.
Cause: separate facilities are inherently unequal
Effect: school districts redrew boundaries,
reassigned pupils, and bussed students to
desegregate; courts heard cases to desegregate
parks, prisons, libraries
Checking for Understanding
Match the term with the correct definition.
___
F rational basis
test
___
D suspect
classification
___
A fundamental
right
___
C discrimination
___
B Jim Crow laws
___
E civil rights
movement
A. a basic right of the American system or
one that is indispensable in a just
system
B. laws requiring racial segregation in such
places as schools, buses, and hotels
C. unfair treatment of individuals based
solely on their race, gender, ethnic
group, age, physical disability, or
religion
D. made on the basis of race or national
origin that is subject to strict judicial
scrutiny
E. the efforts to end segregation
F. used by a Court to determine whether a
state law is reasonably related to an
acceptable goal of the government
Checking for Understanding
3. Identify racial discrimination, segregation.
Racial discrimination is treating members of a
race differently simply because of race.
Segregation is the separation of people from
the larger social group.
Checking for Understanding
4. List three guidelines or tests the Supreme Court
uses in its judgment of cases involving equal
protection under the law.
It uses the rational basis test, suspect
classifications, and fundamental rights.
Critical Thinking
5. Checking Consistency Was Chief Justice Earl
Warren’s opinion in Brown v. Board of Education
of Topeka consistent with Justice Harlan’s
dissenting opinion in Plessy v. Ferguson?
Explain your answer.
Possible answer: Yes, both Warren and Harlan
wrote that equal protection of the laws meant
that racial segregation was unconstitutional.
Constitutional Interpretations Find
information about the Civil Rights Act of
1964, Voting Rights Act of 1965, Equal
Employment Opportunities Act of 1972,
Education Amendment of 1972, Voting
Rights Act of 1975, and Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990. Prepare an
informational brochure that describes
these acts.