Chapter Outline

The Struggle for Equality

1. African Americans were faced with overcoming the barriers stemming from the condition of slavery. Though subjected to considerable discrimination even after the Civil War amendments and Civil Rights acts, they did not begin to receive favorable consideration from the Supreme Court until the 1930s. The 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decisionwas a significant breakthrough in combating racial discrimination. It paved the way for negation of the prevailing "separate but equal" doctrine, and encouraged the modern civil rights movement. Although African Americans have made some legal progress since the 1960s, the economic and legal situation of African Americans has not improved significantly. The only area in which African Americans have made notable progress is in winning election to public office.
2. Women are not technically a minority, yet carry a long history of second class status and discrimination. Women were given the vote in 1920 but failed to get an Equal Rights Amendment ratified in the 1970s. While women have made progress in winning political office, they still suffer inequality of treatment in job-related issues such as family leave, comparable worth and sexual harassment. They seek greater support from acts of violence.
3. Native Americans suffered ill treatment at the hands of early American settlers that persists despite attempts in the modern era to address their condition. The Indian Bill of Rights passed by Congress in 1968 provides Native Americans the same constitutional guarantees as other Americans.
4. Hispanic Americans are estimated to become the largest racial/ethnic minority in America by the year 2000. Hispanic Americans come from differing Spanish-speaking backgrounds and cultures. Improvement of their status is often hampered by issues of immigration, alien status, and citizenship but will be helped by increased political activity.
5. Asian Americans have experienced discrimination since the late 1800s, especially regarding immigration opportunities. Though benefiting from the civil rights movement and the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Asian Americans still suffer from employment and other discrimination.
6. Other groups who have benefited from legislation are the disabled and elderly. Disabled Americans have been helped by the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, and other education-related legislation. Elderly Americans are protected from forced retirement and some job discrimination.
7. Discrimination based on sexual orientation and life style issues has recently come to public attention and is being addressed slowly by the courts and society.

Equality Under the Law

1. The reasonable-basis test allows unequal treatment under the law if it is related to a legitimate government interest. It cannot be applied to racial or ethnic classifications. For example, courts have upheld laws that set age requirements for drinking alcohol or getting a driver's license.
2. The strict-scrutiny test holds that any law that discriminates on the basis of racial and ethnic classifications, especially when these categories serve to discriminate against minority group members, is unconstitutional in the absence of an overwhelmingly convincing argument that the law in question is necessary. The Supreme Court has held that race and national origin are suspect classifications, which means that such classifications have invidious discrimination as their purpose and therefore any law containing such a classification is in all likelihood unconstitutional.
3. Sex discrimination is not included in the suspect classification test and falls under an intermediate-scrutiny test which permits justifiable different classification and treatment.

Since the Fourteenth Amendment applies only to action by the government and not private parties, the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968 as well as the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were passed by Congress to aid minorities in the struggle for equal rights in the private sector. Of especial concern is that the areas for political participation in America are accessible and available to all qualified citizens. This includes voting and drawing of congressional districts.

Equality of Result

1. The text makes the distinction between de jure and de facto discrimination.
2. Affirmative action programs aim to provide full and equal opportunities in employment, education and other areas for women, minorities, and individuals belonging to other traditionally disadvantaged groups. Opposition to affirmative action, especially to what has been called reverse discrimination, has intensified in recent years and may be subject to alteration.
3. To overcome patterns of residential segregation in order to achieve social integration, schools began using the device of busing children from one neighborhood to another. Though busing has provided some equality of result for children, it is an unpopular remedy for most Americans. Busing has been discouraged as a result of Supreme Court decisions in 1995 and 1997 as the judiciary shifted its attention more to the broader issue of improving the quality of inner-city schools.

Superficial Differences, Deep Divisions