GOVERNMENTS RESPONSES TO SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

“An unjust law is a code inflicted upon a minority which that minority had no part in enacting or creating because it did not have the unhampered right to vote. Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up the segregation laws was democratically elected? Throughout the state of Alabama all types of conniving methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties without a single Negro registered to vote, despite the fact that the Negroes constitute a majority of the population. Can any law set up in such a state be considered democratically structured?”

Dr. Martin Luther King, “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” 1963

Which of the following governmental policies would the author most likely support as a solution to the problems described in this passage?

• The Civil Rights Act of 1964

• The Twenty-sixth Amendment

• The Voting Rights Act of 1965

• Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972

Based on the information in the pie charts, which of the following best summarizes the effect of Title IX?

• It created more opportunities for female athletes to participate in sports

• It decreased the number of male athletes involved in high school sports

• It eliminated several male-dominated sports, like football, from American high schools

• It increased the number of female scholarships in public and private universities

Which of the following accurately describes the information presented in the pie charts?

• The total number of high school athletes decreased from 1971-72 to 2011-12

• From 1971-72 to 2011-12, female athletes became more likely to participate in high school sports than male athletes

• All high school sports became co-ed, allowing for female athletes to participate on male sports teams

• Female athletes represented a larger proportion of total high school athletes in 2011-2012 than in 1971-1972

In 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. organized the March on Washington to protest racial discrimination and segregation in public places. Which of the following statements describes how Congress responded to this situation?

• Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment

• Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964

• Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965

• Congress passed the Twenty-fourth Amendment

In the 1960s, literacy tests were used in an attempt to limit African American participation in the voting process.

Which of the following statements describes how Congress responded to this situation?

• Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965

• Congress issued fines to any state who used literacy tests

• Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964

• Congress created the Federal Elections Commission to regulate voting centers

Which of the following policies is an example of specific legislation that extended civil rights to women?

• The Twenty-fourth Amendment

• Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972

• The Twenty-sixth Amendment

• The Voting Rights Act of 1965

In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled that race-based segregation in a public school system was unconstitutional.

Which of the following constitutional provisions did the Supreme Court use to support their decision?

• The free exercise clause clause of the First Amendment

• The due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

• The due process clause of the Fifth Amendment

• The equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment

Which of the following statements best explains why the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was a significant political event?

• It lowered the voting age from twenty-one to eighteen

• It strengthened the role of primaries in presidential elections

• It extended suffrage to African American men and women

• It removed structural barriers to minority voting

In the 1960s and 1970s, women began protesting gender discrimination in colleges and universities, such as unequal scholarship allocation to men’s sports and women’s sports.

Which of the following statements describes how Congress responded to this situation?

• Congress passed Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972

• Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964

• Congress passed the Nineteenth Amendment

• Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment

Which of the following statements best explains why the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a significant political event?

• It prevented schools and universities from discriminating against female students

• It extended suffrage to African American men and women

• It removed structural barriers to minority voting

• It prohibited discrimination in public places, employment, and voting