American Government
and Organization
PS1301
Tuesday, 30 November
Announcements
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Midterm grades posted on the web; 10 point
curve. Average score 79.
Last day of class is next Tuesday; final exam is
the following week. For date and time see the
University exam schedule
Two thirds of final exam will be comprehensive;
the remaining third will focus on the material
from the third midterm.
What Are Civil Rights?
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Americans have applied the term civil rights to a
variety of rights and privileges.
Civil rights represent those protections by
government power. That is, they require
governments to act, whereas civil liberties are
well served when government does nothing.
Modern Day Civil Rights
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Modern day “civil rights” include safeguards
against any effort by government or dominant
groups in a community to subjugate another
group and take unfair, mostly economic,
advantage of it.
The concept has advanced well beyond the
“civic” rights of colonial America.
Contemporary Interpretation
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Civil rights refers to the equality of all people,
regardless of:
– Race, ethnicity, or national origin
– Religion
– Gender
– Sexual orientation
– Age
– Disability
– Disease (e.g., HIV/AIDS, cancer)
– Weight, etc.
Civil Rights and the 14th Amendment
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•“All persons born or naturalized in the United
States … are citizens of the United States … No
state shall … deny to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
The basic concept is political and legal equality
But does not guarantee complete
equality
Discrimination on the basis of achievement
& behavior is allowable
 – Universities may reward academic merit
 – Employers may hire the best qualified
 – Laws may punish people who are felons
 – Income taxes may discriminate on the basis of
a person’s income
Civil Rights Movement
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The 1964 Civil Rights Act
The Voting Rights Act of 1965
This aggressive law authorized the Justice Department to
suspend restrictive electoral tests in southern states that
had a history of low black turnout.
 Federal officers could be sent into the state to register
voters directly.
 States also had to obtain clearance from the Justice
Department before changing their election laws.
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Literacy Tests
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Are you qualified to vote?
In Alabama, Part A required you to read out to the registrar’s
satisfaction a section of the Constitution.
In Part B and C, you were required to answer two sets of four
written questions. Here are some examples:
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What body can try impeachments of the president of the United States?
Name the Attorney General of the United States.
At what time of day on January 20 each four years does the term of the
president of the United States end?
If the president does not wish to sign a bill, how many days is he allowed
in which to return it to Congress for reconsideration?
If a bill is passed by Congress and the president refuses to sign it and
does not send it back to Congress in session within the specified period
of time, is the bill defeated or does it become law?
For other questions see parts B and C of the Alabama Literacy
Test.
Other examples of Civil Rights
Policy - Affirmative Action
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Affirmative action was the means used by the
government to redress past discrimination in
employment.
This policy requires any employers or
government agencies that have practiced
discrimination to compensate minorities by
giving them special consideration in their
selection for employment and education.
Affirmative Action
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This policy is most controversial when applied to
 Government contracting,
 University admissions to increase minority
enrollment,
 Employment policies to promote minority presence
and advancement in business and the professions.
Notion of quotas quickly rejected by the Court and the
public. Bakke v. UC Regents 1978
Still, controversy persists.
Affirmative Action
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The contentious politics for and against affirmative
action have revolved around “preferential” criteria.
This criteria gives minorities some advantage in
university admissions, employment, and government
contracts without imposing numerical quotas.
While a majority of Americans support special
assistance for minorities subjected to past
discrimination, a majority also draws the line at
affirmative action.
Emerging Rights
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Americans with Disabilities Act bars
discrimination in employment, transportation,
public accommodation, and telecommunications
against persons with physical and mental
disabilities.
Elderly with help of the American Association
of Retired Persons have worked to end
mandatory retirement.
Emerging Rights
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Two recent cases illustrate problems courts confront in
trying to implement the ADA.
In 1999 the Court ruled that an airline that only hired
pilots with 20/20 vision could reject those who
required corrective lenses. They had filed their suit
under ADA utilizing their eyesight as a disability. But
the Court said that because it could be corrected it was
not a disability, so the law did not apply.
Emerging Rights
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In 2001, the Court decided that a golfer with an
atrophied leg could use a golf cart on the PGA
tour despite a rule forbidding one.
Walking, the Court said, was not “fundamental”
to the game.
Civil Liberties
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We classify as civil liberties the Constitution’s
protections from government power.
Freedom of speech, religion and the right to
privacy are examples.
Typically violations of these liberties occur when
some government agency, at any level, oversteps its
authority.
Who protects our civil liberties?
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Does the constitution guarantee certain absolute
civil liberties?
Truth is that our interpretations of these
freedoms constantly change.
Question of how to balance individual liberties
with societal rights
Cases Involving Civil Liberties
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Free Speech, Schenck v. United States (1919)
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Freedom of Press, New York Times v. Sullivan (1964)
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Three part test for judging constitutionality of division between church
and state
Gun Control, United States v. Miller (1939)
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Court attempts to define obscenity
Establishment Clause, Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)
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Libel violates 1st Amendment
Obscenity, Roth v. United States (1957)
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clear and present danger
2nd Amendment does not provide for absolute guarantee
Right to Privacy, Roe v. Wade (1973)
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Landmark case on abortion