SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND EQUAL PROTECTION

“No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family . . . It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization's oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.”

-Justice Anthony Kennedy, majority opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)

Based on the text, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?

• Marriage is a fundamental right under the Fourteenth Amendment’s equal protection and due process clauses

• A new constitutional amendment should protect the fundamental right of marriage

• The institution of marriage is more important than the Constitution

• Individuals should be able to declare their love for each other openly based on the First Amendment’s protection of freedom of speech

Based on previous rulings, which of the following scenarios would most likely violate the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

• Police use a fake warrant to enter a woman’s home and then arrest her for possessing obscene materials

• A state law criminalizes intermarriage between white and black citizens

• A school district allows students of two religions, but not students from a third, to use auditoriums for group prayer and meditation

• A city ordinance prevents protests from civil rights groups

“Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected? Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which, even though Negroes constitute a majority of the population, not a single Negro is registered. Can any law enacted under such circumstances be considered democratically structured?”

-Excerpt from King, Martin Luther Jr., “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” in Why We Can’t Wait, ed. Martin Luther King, Jr., 77-100, 1963.

Which of the following statements best explains Martin Luther King's argument regarding democratic participation in the above excerpt?

• A law affecting African Americans is unjust if they had no part in creating it as a result of being denied the right to vote

• The federal government’s undemocratic control of the Alabama state legislature is responsible for preventing African Americans from registering to vote

• Segregation laws and the disenfranchisement of African Americans are unjust if they are not supported by the state legislature

• Through devious methods, the majority of Alabama state legislators are able to undermine federal statutes outlawing segregation

“Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected? Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which, even though Negroes constitute a majority of the population, not a single Negro is registered. Can any law enacted under such circumstances be considered democratically structured?”

-Excerpt from King, Martin Luther Jr., “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” in Why We Can’t Wait, ed. Martin Luther King, Jr., 77-100, 1963.

The “devious methods” mentioned in this passage refer to which of the following?

• Segregation

• Demographics

• Structural barriers

• Party-line voting

• a

• b

• c

• d

“An unjust law is a code that a majority inflicts on a minority that is not binding on itself. This is difference made legal. On the other hand, a just law is a code that a majority compels a minority to follow, and that it is willing to follow itself. This is sameness made legal.”

-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail, 1963.

Which of the following constitutional provisions guarantees that “sameness [is] made legal” in King’s argument?

• The faithful execution clause of Article II

• The equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

• The full faith and credit clause of Article IV

• The establishment clause of the First Amendment

Supporters of King’s view that just laws would treat the majority and minority the same could point to which of the following Supreme Court cases?

• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

• Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)

• McDonald v. Chicago (2010)

• Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)

Which of the following actions may Congress take to advance civil rights?

• Issue an executive order desegregating the military

• Strike down state laws banning racial quotas in university admissions

• Declare Voter ID restrictions unconstitutional

• Pass a law requiring that all schools receiving federal funding comply with desegregation efforts

Which of the following is an example of a social movement motivated by the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

• The Progressive movement

• The women’s rights movement

• Occupy Wall Street

• Abolitionism

Which of the following scenarios would likely be considered an unconstitutional use of state power under the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

• Florida passes a law denying legal counsel to suspected terrorists

• A state law criminalizes intermarriage between white and black citizens

• Idaho refuses to recognize drivers’ licenses issued in states that do not strictly enforce immigration laws

• Michigan passes a law requiring individuals to be 21 or older to marry