The Evolution of the Constitution
• Benchmark: Analyze the evolution of the
Constitution through post-Reconstruction
amendments and Supreme Court decisions.
• Judicial Review
• Constitutional Amendments
• When the Framers drafted the Constitution, they included the means
to change it in order to adapt to new circumstances. The Constitution
can be changed by adding amendments, a difficult process that
requires the approval of two-thirds of the House and the Senate and
three-fourths of the states. When it decides cases, the Supreme Court,
depending on the views of its nine justices, can reinterpret the
Constitution. This benchmark asks students to analyze the ways the
US Constitution has changed over time as the result of amendments
and Supreme Court rulings. Specifically, it refers to three court cases-Plessy v. Ferguson, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
and Regents of the University of California v. Bakke--and two
amendments--the 19th, which gave women the right to vote, and the
26th, which lowered the voting age to 18. Questions on the OGT will
refer to these cases and amendments, focusing on how they helped the
Constitution evolve and change.
I. Judicial Review
A. 1787: Framers came up with checks and
balance system
1. 3 branches of gov. check each other
2. No branch would become too powerful
Judicial Review 3:46
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• B. One judicial branch check on other 2 =
Judicial Review
– 1. Courts (esp. Supreme Court) determine
whether laws and actions are constitutional or
not
– 2. If majority of justices agree, the Supreme
Court has the power to strike down any law
passed by Congress and signed by the President
• 3. Most of the time--courts uphold the law
• 4. 150 times--they have ruled a law
unconstitutional
• 5. This gives the Supreme Court power to
change the Constitution
• 6. *Thus, the Constitution evolves over
time!
Controversy Behind Judicial Review 3:01
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B. Post-Civil War Amendments
• 1. Three amendments passed to correct the
issue of slavery
– A. 13th Amendment (1865): abolished slavery
– B. 14th Amendment (1868): anyone born in
the US is a citizen and guaranteed due process
and equal protection of the laws to all people
– C. 15th Amendment (1870): no one could be
denied the right to vote because of race, color,
previous enslavement
13th, 14th and 15 Amendments 1:44
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C. Jim Crow Laws
• 1. Passed in the South after 13th, 14th, and 15
amendments
• 2. Designed to keep the South segregated
– Examples:
• A. Separate facilities for blacks and whites (schools,
restaurants, train and bus stations, hospitals, parks, and
drinking fountains)
• B. Poll taxes--keep poor (esp. African-Americans) from
voting
• C. Literacy tests--keep those who could not read from voting
D. Homer Plessy Challenges Jim Crow
• 1. Louisiana law: separate railroad cars for
whites and blacks
• 2. Homer Plessy (7/8 white and 1/8 black) sits on
the white car
• 3. He is arrested
• 4. Judge John Ferguson finds him guilty
• 5. Plessy appeals to Louisiana Supreme court-they still say he’s guilty
• 6. Plessy appeals to US Supreme Court--says this
is against 13th and 14th amendments
E. Plessy v. Ferguson
• 1. Supreme Court uphold decision (8-1 vote)
• 2. Allows for segregation if facilities are “separate
but equal”
• 3. This decision set a legal precedent (an example
to be followed in future cases)
• 4. Because of decision, many other things
segregated: school, hospitals, restaurants, etc.
• 5. This decision lessened the rights of minorities
• 6. Racial segregation became legal for the next 6
decades
F. Justice Harlan’s Dissent in Plessy
• 1. 1 justice (John Marshall Harlan)
dissented (disagreed) with the majority
• 2. He wrote: “Our Constitution is colorblind, and neither knows nor tolerates
classes among citizens. In respect of civil
rights, all citizens are equal before the law.”
Short Answer
• How did the Plessy decision affect African
Americans?
G. Brown Case
• 1. 1954: Plessy decision would finally be
overturned
• 2. Because of Plessy, most school is South
were segregated
• 3. Supposed to be “separate but equal” but
most were not
H. Linda Brown: Challenge to
School Segregation
• 1. Linda Brown
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
A. African-American student
B. White school near her home
C. Had to walk over 1 mile to get to her school
D. Tried to enroll in white school
E. Not allowed
F. Went to court in Kansas
G. Arguments: Brown says segregated schools are
unfair; state says the segregated school are fine
– H. Judges agreed with Brown, but decision went
against her because of the precedent set in Plessy.
• 2. Brown appeals to Supreme Court
– A. Dec. 1954: Court announces its unanimous
decision
– B. “Separate but equal” is overturned!
– C. *The Supreme Court changed the understanding of
the Constitution by using judicial review!!!!!
– D. This decision protected rights of African-Americans
and minorities
– E. Schools did NOT segregate right away
– F. Took 20 years for schools to start desegregating
Brown Case 3:08
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I. Bakke case
• 1. Allan Bakke applied for admission into U. Of
California Medical School
• 2. He was denied
• 3. Why? 16 slots reserved for minorities--quota
system
• 4. Bakke’s scores were better than all 16 minority
students who were admitted
• 5. Bakke sued--claims he is victim of reverse
discrimination
• 6. Decision: quota systems could be used, AS
LONG AS RACE WAS NOT THE ONLY
CRITERION!!
• 7. Bakke allowed to be admitted
II. Constitutional Amendments
• The Constitution changes by being amended
• Very difficult and unusual for an amendment (only 27
amendments)
• How is the Constitution amended?
– A. Two ways to propose an amendment
• 2/3 vote of both houses of Congress
• National convention called by Congress at the request of 2/3 of the states
– B. Two ways to ratify (pass) the proposal
• Legislatures in 3/4 of the states pass it
• Each state holds a ratifying convention and 3/4 vote in favor of the
proposal
A. Women Seek the Right to Vote
• 1. After Civil War (1860’s), women wanted
began to fight for right to vote
• 2. By 1911: 6 states allowed women to
vote
• 3. Women wanted a Constitutional
amendment!
B. Suffragette Movement
• 1. Suffrage: the right to vote
• 2. Women continued to fight for an amendment
during WWI.
• 3. *1920: 19th Amendment passed. “The right of
citizens of the United States to vote shall not be
denied or abridged by the United States or by any
state on account of sex.”
• WOMEN COULD NOW VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Short Answer
• What effect did the 19th Amendment have
on the United States?
C. Calls to Lower the Voting age
to 18
• 1. Vietnam war played important role
– A. Many under 18 were going to war and
getting killed
• 2. 26th amendment
– A. Passed in 1971
– B. Allowed 18 year olds to vote
• *Both the 19th and 26th amendments
expanded a basic right of citizenship to
more people--THAT IS THE RIGHT TO
VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
• *Both are great examples of how the
Constitution evolves to meet the needs of
new generations of citizens!
Short Answer
• In what way was the 26th Amendment
similar to the 19th Amendment?
OGT Multiple Choice
Which court case said that “separate but equal” was
OK?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Plessy v. Ferguson
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
Roe v. Wade
OGT Multiple Choice
Which court case struck down “separate but equal”
and was an end to racial segregation in the
South?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Plessy v. Ferguson
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
Roe v. Wade
OGT Multiple Choice
Which court case allowed for a quota system, as long
as race is not the only criterion used to fill the
quota?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Plessy v. Ferguson
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke
Roe v. Wade
OGT Multiple Choice
Which amendment gave women the right to vote in
1920?
A.
B.
C.
D.
19th Amendment
26th Amendment
18th Amendment
21st Amendment
OGT Multiple Choice
Which amendment gave 18 year olds the right to
vote in 1971?
A.
B.
C.
D.
19th Amendment
26th Amendment
18th Amendment
21st Amendment
OGT Multiple Choice
Which is NOT an example of a Jim Crow law?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Poll taxes
Literacy tests
Separate schools for whites and blacks
Integrated railroad cars
OGT Multiple Choice
•
•
•
•
•
In Brown vs. Board of Education, the
Supreme Court held that
A. the states, not the federal government,
have to deal with civil rights
B. racially separate facilities do not violate
the 14th Amendment
C. racial segregation in public schools is
unconstitutional
D. racial separate facilities damage the
education of white children
OGT Multiple Choice
•
•
•
•
•
(Practice Test Booklet 2005) The Brown
v. Board of Education decision in 1954
did which of the following:
A. Struck down the principal of
“separate but equal” in schools
B. Provided for segregated school
based on race
C. Supported the Plessy v. Ferguson
decision of 1896
D. Supported the principal of “separate
but equal” in schools
OGT Multiple Choice
•
•
•
•
•
(Practice Test Booklet 2005) The
Supreme Court decision in Plessy v.
Ferguson in 1896 established the
principal of
A. one man, one vote
B. separate but equal
C. runaway slaves were property
D. desegregation in schools
OGT Multiple Choice
•
Which of the following amendments
abolished slavery in 1865?
– A. 13th Amendment
– B. 14th Amendment
– C. 15th Amendment
– D. 16th Amendment
OGT Multiple Choice
•
Which of the following amendments
made anyone born in the US a citizen
and guaranteed them due process and
equal protection of the law in 1868?
– A. 13th Amendment
– B. 14th Amendment
– C. 15th Amendment
– D. 16th Amendment
OGT Multiple Choice
•
Which of the following amendments said
no one could be denied the right to vote
because of race, color, or previous
enslavement in 1870?
– A. 13th Amendment
– B. 14th Amendment
– C. 15th Amendment
– D. 16th Amendment
•
Actions taken by organizations such as
those shown in the photo above helped
bring about
•
•
A.
the decision in Plessy v. Ferguson.
B.
the decision in Brown v. Board of
Education.
C.
the. 19th Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution
D.
the 26th Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution.
•
•
• Actions such as those shown in the
picture above helped bring about
• A.
the decision in Plessy v.
Ferguson .
• B.
the decision in Brown v.
Board of Education.
• C.
the 19th Amendment.
• D.
the 26th Amendment
OGT Multiple Choice
• (OGT Test, 2007) One way the U.S.
Constitution evolves is through the
amendment process. How were the changes
that occurred as a result of the ratification of
the 19th and 26th Amendments similar?
• A. Large groups of people gained the right
to vote.
• B. The right of individuals to bear arms was
restricted.
• C. The powers of the federal government
were expanded.
• D. The separation of church and state was
more clearly defined.
OGT Multiple Choice
• (OGT Test, 2008) Minority students in public
schools were given constitutional guarantees
to equal educational opportunities as a result
of the
• A. decision in Brown v. Board of Education.
• B. ratification of the 26th amendment.
• C. ratification of the 19th amendment.
• D. decision in Plessy v. Ferguson.
OGT Extended Response
Explain the difference between the decision
made in Plessy v. Ferguson (1898) and the
decision made in Brown v. Board of
Education (1954). What are some reasons
why the decision made in Plessy was
reversed in Brown. (Does this prove that
the U.S. Constitution is a living
document? How?) (4 pts)
OGT Short Answer
What is judicial review and how does this
allow the Supreme Court to change the
Constitution?
OGT Extended Response
What was the decision made in the Bakke
case? (1 point) Do you agree with this
decision? (1 point) Why or why not? (2
points).