Magruder’s American Government
1st Edition
ISBN: 9780133306996
Textbook solutions
All Solutions
Section 9-3: Equality Before the Law
Exercise 1
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The **Equal Protection Clause** states that no government entity should create or enforce laws that aren’t based on equality or take a form of privilege-based selection and decision maiking.
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The Equal Protection Clause has been enacted because the States are proclaimed to be a country of liberty, equality, and pursuit of dreams. Therefore, it was only suitable for the government to create a law that demanded equal treatment of all citizens. Furthermore, citizens that face similar circumstances shall be treated equally by government – regardless of their background, values, religion, or status.
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The clause was added to the Constitution after the **Civil War** to outline and “cement” the end of slavery and bring a brighter future to all the citizens. This clause helps maintain and create more balance of equality in the States.
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The Declaration of Independence states the equality of all people as one of the basic values. This value is formulated in the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, which states that in each State, individuals will have equal protection of the laws.
The Equal Protection Clause was added to the Constitution after the end of the Civil War with the intention of emphasizing the abolition of slavery and the liberation of the people affected by it.
The Equal Protection Clause was added to the Constitution after the end of the Civil War with the intention of emphasizing the abolition of slavery and the liberation of the people affected by it.
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Later, this clause was used in determining the permissible degree of discrimination against people by governments. Some reasonable discrimination by governments is necessary because it is necessary to distinguish between certain people and groups of people. All people generally enjoy equal rights before the law, but everyone is also required to respect the law equally. If some people choose to break the law, the state has the right to discriminate against them in certain ways. The state has no right to unreasonably discriminate against people on the basis of sex, age, etc. In that case it would represent The Equal Protection Clause.
Exercise 2
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In the states of **Kansas, Virginia, South Carolina, and Delaware**, the laws either allowed or **required public school segregation** for the African American and white students.
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In the case **Brown v. Board Education** of Topeka, the Supreme Court unanimously struck down the laws for public school segregation in those four states. The court found school segregation to be unjust because it is race-based and against the founding American principles. It is believed that way of raising students is improper and might affect their well-being.
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Therefore, the Supreme Court demanded a reasonable start to enact the newfound law deliberately and as soon as possible.
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**Segregation process** means discrimination against people on the basis of some of their characteristics. In the 19th century, many States had laws that discriminated against people on the basis of race, thus legitimizing racial segregation.
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In 1896, after the Plessy v. Ferguson case, Supreme Court adopted a **separate-but-equal doctrine.** This doctrine implied that separation is constitutional if it provides equal conditions for both parties.
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This doctrine was later challenged during various cases before the Supreme Court to be finally dismissed in 1954 following the verdict in the case of Brown v. Board of Education. This ruling repealed the laws of several states that allowed for the existence of separate schools for whites and the African American population. Following the verdict, the court ordered the States to start the segregation process and demanded that this process be completed **”with all deliberate speed”**.
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The Court gave the States time to complete the desegregation process because it knew that after so many years of segregation it was not possible to abolish it all at once.
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After 15 years, while ruling the Alexander v. The Holmes County Board of Education case, the Supreme Court has decided that enough time has passed and that the existence of segregation in the education system is absolutely unconstitutional.
Exercise 3
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**Segregation** means discrimination against people based on some of their characteristics. In the United States, racial segregation has existed for a long time, which has been legally allowed in the past.
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The term **de jure segregation** means precisely the segregation established by law. Among other fields, legal segregation was present in school systems. In 1970 it was finally banned from them. This of course does not mean that segregation has ceased to exist, in fact it has survived in many school systems in an informal form.
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The term **de facto segregation** means the existence of discrimination without a legal basis. In some cases, it was the result of the actual situation in society, for example, if in a city there is a neighborhood inhabited by one ethnic group, it is expected that the school in that neighborhood will be attended by students of that ethnicity. Governments have tried with more or less success to overcome this type of segregation with various provisions and laws.
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**Segregation**, in essence, is the practice of separating particular societal groups from one another on the basis of individuals’ backgrounds, culture, and skin color.
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**De jure** segregation in the United States was established by local laws, following the conclusion of the Civil War and the subsequent Reconstruction. All public places and facilities were legally separated (with the so-called Jim Crow laws) into those intended for white and others intended for black people according to the principle “separate but equal”. De jure segregation of public schools was outlawed by the decision of the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 further desegregated the nation.
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**De facto** segregation is an informal form of segregation that is not legally sanctioned. Examples of de facto segregation are neighborhoods made up of a high percentage of a single ethnic or racial group that evolved naturally, causing, for instance, the schools and workplaces in the area being mostly frequented by the members of the same ethnic or racial group. Hence, the segregation of this area was established through voluntary associations, not by law.
Exercise 4
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Differences in the socioeconomic status of people can lead to segregation in terms of education, work, places of residence, etc. Members of lower economic status have greater difficulty accessing education and social facilities that are not free. Lack of education later leads to the inability to find a well-compensated job. Lower incomes determine the way of life and belonging to the lower classes of society. In the United States, lower socioeconomic status is often associated with minorities because in the past they had fewer opportunities for education and transition to higher layers of society. Given how minorities have been treated in the past, their descendants have not had many opportunities to progress and improve their socioeconomic status.
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The segregation that results from socioeconomic status can be seen in schools, education funding, lack of legal rights, employment opportunities, and more.
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Furthermore, most of the **segregation that comes from the differences in socioeconomic status is based on**:
– Skin color.
– Economic class (high, middle, and low).
– Achievements in the educational system.
– Residential location.
– Skin color.
– Economic class (high, middle, and low).
– Achievements in the educational system.
– Residential location.
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Usually, individuals of a minority population of lower economic status experience more considerable challenges in their career and personal life. It is no coincidence that the minorities are generally less educated and of lower status – because of fewer opportunities and discrimination they face in various aspects of society.
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The **nation’s goal is to provide access to a better future** that is equal for all. The government’s branches keep working on that goal.
Exercise 5
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Although the Constitution guarantees the rights of all people without division on the basis of gender, in practice it has often happened that the law is applied differently to men and women. For a very long time, women were treated as the weaker sex who needed the help of men and who needed to be protected from certain situations and inclinations. This opinion permeated American society, which led to women being discriminated against because of their gender, and even legally.
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The first case that brought the issue of sexual discrimination before the Supreme Court was Bradwell v. Illinois case from 1873. The court upheld a Illinois law that barred women from practicing law. According to the famous opinion given in the verdict by Judge Joseph P. Bradley, the law was supported because it was stated that women have a personality who does not agree with many professions, including practicing law.
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This opinion was acceptable for the period when it was given because of the then general understanding of women as gentle beings who are not capable of acting alone in all areas of life. In that sense, the law that was supported would pass the rational basis test.
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In nowadays, in which women have fought for formal equality with men, this law would be considered unreasonable, would not pass the rational basis test and would therefore be unconstitutional.
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The matters that society sees as rational can change through time. That is why the laws have to be updated, and Congress informed and corresponsive to the current circumstances.
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The **first case that challenged sex discrimination** was the case of Bradwell v. Illinois (1873). The court forbids barring of women from judicial practices. **Joseph Bradley** marked the case by expressing her take on the matter.
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The **rational basis test** examines whether governmental actions are under the Equal Protection Clause. If decisions are being made based on gender, it is a form of exclusion and is not offering equality for everyone, in this case, women.
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Everyone, and not only women, can experience a lack of courage for a particular job. Even if someone is considered more delicate than others, it can be subjective. Thus it should not be considered valid. In the case of someone, per se, being more delicate, it does not take away from the ability to execute work tasks successfully, but it might affect it. Furthermore, both genders can experience this.
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