Difference Between Civil Rights And Civil Liberties

1097 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Trial court brown v board of education

Civil Liberties v Civil Rights
The protection of civil liberties and civil rights is critical to the existence of our society. Civil rights are the nonpolitical rights of people granted by the government that provide protection for citizens and guarantee fairness. For example, civil rights ensure a person receives equal treatment with regard to education, housing, employment, etc. Civil rights protect people from discrimination and unfair treatment. Civil liberties are basic rights for all people that are broad and guaranteed by the Constitution. Civil liberties are also referred to as personal freedoms. These liberties or freedoms give people the various rights without government interference such as the right to free speech, to vote, …show more content…

As a country it is important that we understand and value the importance of civil rights. The following cases demonstrate the importance of rights and liberties. In Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), the Supreme Court ruled on the inherent right to privacy. The Supreme Court ruled that the state could not ban the use of contraceptives. They determined that this was a violation of martial privacy. The state was attempting to fine and/or arrest people that were using any type of medicine or instrument to prevent pregnancy. This case was followed by Roe v. Wade (1973), where the Supreme Court not only gave women the right to privacy but also the right to have an abortion. In Zelman v. Simmons-Harris (2002), the Supreme Court gave parents in Ohio the right to use vouchers in order for their children to attend religious or private schools. While these cases protect liberties, the cases involving civil rights are far more reaching. In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court prohibited racial segregation of public schools. In Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson (1986), the Supreme Court ruled that a “hostile environment” related to sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination. The impact of protecting our civil rights ensures a more inclusive American

Show More
Related

  • Jackson V. Birmingham Board Of Education Case Study

    933 Words  | 2 Pages

    The impact left in this case, Jackson vs. Board of Education (2005), has been an issue that?s gone on for decades. It is a more recent encounter that shows it still exists in modern day. In Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education (1999) and Franklin v. Gwinnett County Public Schools (1992) these cases both enforce Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 such as Jackson vs. Board of Education (2005). Rights to equal protection began in Brown vs. Board of Education (1954). This case left a huge impact on equal rights against sexual discrimination, discussing the importance of the 14th

    Read More

  • American Civil Liberties: Do Americans Have Enough Protections for Civil Liberties, or Not?

    1449 Words  | 3 Pages

    In order to fully understand what constitutes as a civil liberty the definition of a civil liberty must first be established. A civil liberty is defined as “Those rights, such as freedom of speech and religion, that are so fundamental that they are outside the authority of government to regulate” ( Schiller, Geer, & Segal, 2013). Essentially meaning that a civil liberty is a basic human right that not even government should be able to interfere with it. Quick examples of these rights are freedom of speech, press, religion,etc.

    Read More

  • Griswold vs. Connecticut

    1819 Words  | 4 Pages

    On June 7th 1965, married couples in the State of Connecticut received the right to acquire and benefit from contraceptive devises. In a majority decision by the United States Supreme Court, seven out of the nine judges believed that sections 53-32 and 54-196 of the General Statues of Connecticut , violated the right of privacy guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. The case set precedence by establishing marital (and later constitutional) privacy, and had notable influence on three later controversial ruling=s in Roe v. Wade (1973), Bowers v. Hardwick (1986) and Planned Parenthood of S.E. Pennsylvania v. Casey (1992) . The issue at hand was, and is still, one that still causes debate, wether a state has the authority to restrict the use and sale of contraceptives. Though it is not contraceptives, anymore, that is at the heart of the abortion debate, this ruling was the first step to the expectation of constitutional privacy.

    Read More

  • Racial Challenges African Americans Faced Throughout History

    1752 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...of religion, the freedom to assemble and civil rights such as the right to be free from discrimination such as gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation. Throughout history, African Americans have endured discrimination, segregation, and racism and have progressively gained rights and freedoms by pushing civil rights movement across America. This paper addressed several African American racial events that took place in our nation’s history. These events were pivotal and ultimately led to the establishment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The Civil Rights Act paved the way for future legislation that was not limited to African American civil rights and is considered a landmark piece of legislation that ending racism, segregation and discrimination throughout the United States.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Brown V. Board Of Education

    704 Words  | 2 Pages

    Brown v. Board of Education, which was the 1954 Supreme Court decision ordering America’s public schools to be desegregated, has become one of the most time-honored decisions in American constitutional law, and in American history as a whole. Brown has redefined the meaning of equality of opportunity, it established a principle that all children have a constitutional right to attend school without discrimination. With time, the principles of equality that were established, because of the Brown trial, extended beyond desegregation to disability, sexuality, bilingual education, gender, the children of undocumented immigrants, and related issues of civil equality.

    Read More

  • The Civil Rights Movement in 1955

    1720 Words  | 4 Pages

    Despite the 14th and 15th constitutional amendments that guarantee citizenship and voting right regardless of race and religion, southern states, in practice, denied African Americans the right to vote by setting up literacy tests and charging a poll tax that was designed only to disqualify them as voters. In 1955, African Americans still had significantly less political power than their white counterparts. As a result, they were powerless to prevent the white from segregating all aspects of their lives and could not stop racial discrimination in public accommodations, education, and economic opportunities. Following the 1954 Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown vs. Board of Education that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional, it remained a hot issue in 1955. That year, however, it was the murder of the fourteen-year-old Emmett Louis Till that directed the nation’s attention to the racial discrimination in America.

    Read More

  • The Role of the Supreme Court in the Civil Rights Movement

    1964 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Supreme Court is perhaps most well known for the Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954. By declaring that segregation in schools was unconstitutional, Kevern Verney says a ‘direct reversal of the Plessy … ruling’1 58 years earlier was affected. It was Plessy which gave southern states the authority to continue persecuting African-Americans for the next sixty years. The first positive aspect of Brown was was the actual integration of white and black students in schools. Unfortunately, this was not carried out to a suitable degree, with many local authorities feeling no obligation to change the status quo. The Supreme Court did issue a second ruling, the so called Brown 2, in 1955. This forwarded the idea that integration should proceed 'with all deliberate speed', but James T. Patterson tells us even by 1964 ‘only an estimated 1.2% of black children ... attended public schools with white children’2. This demonstrates that, although the Supreme Court was working for Civil Rights, it was still unable to force change. Rathbone agrees, saying the Supreme Court ‘did not do enough to ensure compliance’3. However, Patterson goes on to say that ‘the case did have some impact’4. He explains how the ruling, although often ignored, acted ‘relatively quickly in most of the boarder s...

    Read More

  • Equality in Education: A Review of Grove City College v. Bell and Title IX

    1131 Words  | 3 Pages

    Civil rights is a topic which is on everyone’s tongues a majority of the time. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, the spotlight was on racial equality. In the 1970s and 1980s, it was gender equality that dominated the stage. In the modern day, it has shifted to same-sex rights. There is always a battle to live up to what America’s forefathers had dreamed of for this country: total equality in society. While it is an uphill battle more often than not, those who push for equality gain enough momentum to succeed in an ever-changing world. The long fight against gender discrimination in the education system is highlighted by the important case in Grove City College v Bell, the effects of the verdict of that case between 1984 and 1987, the passing of the Civil Rights Restoration Act, and how Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act has evolved in the modern day.

    Read More

  • Federal Government Reflection

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    Both Civil liberties and rights are not nor represent the same thing. Civil liberties are personal guarantees and freedoms that the government cannot abridge, either by law or by judicial interpretation. Civil rights are the rights of individuals to receive equal treatment in a number of settings including education, employment, housing, and more. Many interests groups use these terms to support their own campains so that politicians might notice something being violated in the constitution.

    Read More

  • The Fourteenth Amendment

    730 Words  | 2 Pages

    The extents of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution has been long discussed since its adoption in mid-late 1800s. Deciding cases like Brown v. Board of Education and Roe v. Wade has been possible due to mentioned amendment. These past cases not only show the progression of American society, but also highlights the degree of versatility that is contained within the amendment. Now, in 2015, the concerns are not of racial segregation or abortion, the extent of the amendment was brought to a new field: same-sex marriage. In Obergefell v Hodges, we can see the epitome of the Equal Protection Clause.

    Read More

  • U.s. Democracy Thriving : A Look Inside American Democracy

    2525 Words  | 6 Pages

    Civil liberties and civil rights in the United States are one of the strengths that...

    Read More

  • The Civil Rights Act of 1964

    1836 Words  | 4 Pages

    Before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation in the United States was commonly practiced in many of the Southern and Border States. This segregation while supposed to be separate but equal, was hardly that. Blacks in the South were discriminated against repeatedly while laws did nothing to protect their individual rights. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ridded the nation of this legal segregation and cleared a path towards equality and integration. The passage of this Act, while forever altering the relationship between blacks and whites, remains as one of history’s greatest political battles.

    Read More

  • Wade's Case: Roe V. Wade And Civil Rights

    1741 Words  | 4 Pages

    Civil rights are the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality. There were many court cases that were connected to Civil Rights. One of the most controversial ones was Roe v. Wade, a case about a single pregnant woman by the name of Jane Roe who lived in Texas where having an abortion was considered a crime except to save the life of the mother. She then later on filed a suit against the Supreme Court and won. The court ruled that the states were forbidden from outlawing or regulating any aspect of abortion during the first 90 day or trimester of pregnancy. Laws mainly related to maternal health in the second and third trimester could enact abortion laws protecting the life of the mother. In this research paper I will be explaining how Roe v. Wade relates to Civil Rights by interfering with your privacy rights. I will also be analyzing how this case positively impacted society today. Roe v. Wade developed Civil Rights in the United States by enhancing the right to privacy, making abortions legal and securing the health of a mother.

    Read More

  • Civil Liberties and Rights

    704 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout American history, our civil liberties as American citizens have evolved immensely. For example, the first ten amendments in the U.S. Constitution are referred to as the “The Bill of Rights,” which contains some of the most cherished civil liberties, such as freedom of speech and religion. These civil liberties however, did not originally apply to state governments or institutions the state established. The Bill of Rights focused solely on what the national government could not do, allowing state governments to do whatever they wanted. For example, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire supported Congregationalist ministers with tax payer dollars for decades. After the Civil War, civil liberties expanded, because three new amendments were added: the Thirteenth, abolishing slavery, the Fourteenth, which redefined civil liberties and rights, and the Fifteenth, which allowed adult, male citizens to vote. The due process clause (contained in the Fourteenth Amendment) became one of the most important civil liberties, because it applied the language of the Fifth Amendment to state governments, proclaiming that they could not “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law....

    Read More

  • Supreme Court and Women's Rights

    1470 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the second part of the twentieth century, women’s rights once again gained a lot of momentum. The women’s liberation movement was born out of women civil right activists who were tired of waiting for legislative change for women’s rights. Even though women are being recognized more in society, they still face difficult issues. Sexism –especially in the workforce –is becoming a major issue, birth control pills are still not popular, and abortions are frowned upon in society. The case Roe v. Wade is about a woman with the fake name of Jane Roe who wanted an abortion but the state of Texas would not let her unless her life was in danger. She sued the district attorney of Dallas County saying that it violated the right to privacy under the 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th Amendments. Usually, some arguments for being against abortions are because it is like killing a life, religious reasons, and less chance of future pregnancies. Some arguments that approve abortion are the rights of privacy and the mother to make her own decision. I decided to pick the landmark case Roe v. Wade because there are many ways to argue for and against abortions, so I wanted to give it an overarching view before I personally pick a side. Roe v. Wade is a significant case because it shows how rights in the Constitution do not have to be explicitly mentioned for it to implement and the change in abortion laws that affect women.

    Read More

More about Difference Between Civil Rights And Civil Liberties

Open Document