Assignment:

 

Short Answer:  Answer the following question in your own words, using 3 or more complete sentences. Answers can be found in the lesson content. You will not conduct outside research

 

4.  The lesson says, “The most important change of the post-Civil War era was the 14th Amendment’s famous clause: ‘No State shall … deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.’” Explain why this was and remains so significant.

 

5.  Summarize and explain the interpretation of the 14th Amendment by the Supreme Court in Plessy vs Ferguson.  Then, go on to summarize and explain how the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the 14th Amendment changed in Brown vs. The Board of Education of Topeka.

 

6. Explain how the early civil rights movement for women (1848-1920) differed from the later civil rights movement after 1960. What were significant objectives for each distinct phase of the movement?

 

 

Apply Your Knowledge – You will conduct outside research for the following questions. Be sure to cite your sources by copying and pasting the URL of the source(s) you used. 

 

7.  A series of laws were passed in the 1960’s that focused on civil rights. For each law listed, explain (i.) what social problem catalyzed the need for the law, (ii.) what the law protected, and  (iii.) the significance of the law:

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Voting Rights Act of 1965

The Civil Rights Act of 1968

 

8.  Select a significant person in the African American Civil Rights Movement to research and report on. Your report should focus on how this person exercised his/her citizenship and transformed American ideas regarding civil rights. Your report should be about 300 words long. Some possible topics to choose from include:

 

Martin Luther King Jr.

Rosa Parks

Malcolm X

Thurgood Marshall

W.E.B. Du Bois

Ella Baker

James Meredith

AA Phillip Randolph

John Lewis

Whitney Young

 

9.  Select a significant person in the Women’s Civil Rights Movement to research and report on. Your report should focus on how this person exercised his/her citizenship and transformed American ideas about women’s rights. Your report should be about 300 words long. Some possible topics to choose from include:

 

Susan B. Anthony

Elizabeth Cody Stanton

Alice Paul

Lucretia Mott

Betty Friedan

Gloria Steinem

 

10.  The principles of equality that are codified in the 14th Amendment regularly come up in U.S. politics today. Choose a contemporary issue that is currently or has recently been debated on the news and discuss how the 14th Amendment is relevant to that issue. After you thoroughly explain how the issue connects to the 14th Amendment, share your opinion about whether the Amendment is actually at risk of being violated. Support your opinion with facts and logic. Your discussion should be about 300 words. (If you need help identifying a topic, write to your teacher.

 

The following links will help you get started on this assignment:

 

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2018/07/the-struggle-over-the-meaning-of-the-14th-amendment-continues/564722/

 

This link provides a great historical overview of the 14th Amendment and explains why it’s controversial even today! 

 

https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/07/28/heres-why-the-14th-amendment-is-a-big-deal

 

This article discusses some current Supreme Court cases that hinged upon interpretations of the 14th Amendment.