Supreme Court Cases 1
Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Established the principle of judicial review (the power of the court to declare a law unconstitutional).
Engel v. Vitale (1962)
States cannot hold prayer in public schools, even if participation is optional and prayer is not tied to a specific religion. Violated the establishment of religion clause of the 1st Amendment.
Roe v. Wade (1973)
The Constitution recognizes a woman's right to terminate her pregnancy by abortion. The Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment inherently protects the fundamental "right to privacy."
Federalist No. 10
A warning about the power of factions and competing interests over the U.S. Government.
A strong, united republic would be more effective than the individual states controlling "factions."
Madison believed a republic would be able to extend the government to more free citizens of greater parts of the country without needing to assemble.
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
The 6th Amendment's guarantee of a right to assistance of counsel applies to criminal defendants in state court by way of the 14th Amendment (due process clause).
Shaw v. Reno (1993)
The North Carolina residents' claim that the State created a racially gerrymandered district violated the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause.
The Declaration of Independence
Approved the separation of the 13 North American British colonies from Great Britain.
Main Idea 1: God made all men equal and gave them the right of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Main Idea 2: The main business of government is to protect these rights.
Main Idea 3: If a government tries to withhold these rights, the people are free to revolt and set up a new government.
Brutus No. 1
Anti-Federalist writing that advocated for a small, decentralized republic. Feared that the multiple factions would threaten personal liberties and opinions. A large, centralized government would not be able to truly represent the people.
The constitution gives too much power to the federal government. A representative democracy would create an elite group of people that lead the country because they would concentrate power.
Schenck v. United States (1919)
The Espionage Act did not violate the 1st Amendment and was an appropriate exercise of Congress' wartime authority.
Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)
The prohibition against the wearing of armbands (form of symbolic protest) violates the students' freedom of speech protections guaranteed by the 1st Amendment.
United States v. Lopez (1995)
The 1990 Gun-Free School Zones Act that forbade individuals from knowingly carrying a gun in a school zone does not violate the commerce clause. The possession of a gun in a local school zone is not an economic activity that might have a substantial effect on interstate commerce.
The Articles of Confederation
Written by the Second Continental Congress to plan the structure of a new government and to create a confederation (government).
Each state had one vote.
Main power of Congress was to make laws.
Congress could not collect taxes; lack of funding for government.
No executive branch to enforce the laws (weak central government).
Federalist No. 51
Addresses means by which appropriate checks and balances can be created in government and also advocates a separation of powers within the national government. Checks and balances.
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
Separate but equal educational facilities for racial minorities is inherently unequal, therefore violating the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.
New York Times Company v. United States (1971)
The Nixon administration's efforts to prevent the publication of "classified information" violated the 1st Amendment. Since publication would not cause inevitable, direct and immediate event imperiling safety of American forces, prior restraint was unjustified.
McDonald v. Chicago (2010)
The Privileges and Immunities/Due Process clauses in the 14th Amendment allow the 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear arms for the purpose of self-defense applicable to the states.
The Constitution of the United States
A new form of government that would override the Articles of Confederation.
Based on 3 primary principles:
1. Inherent rights (life, liberty, pursuit of happiness).
2. Government by the people (voters had a voice in local, state and national government)(system that could be changed in an orderly fashion).
3. Separation of powers (checks and balances of executive [execute laws], legislative [create laws], and judicial branches [settle disputes]).
The Constitution is the supreme law of the land: no laws may contradict its principles and no person/government is exempt from following it.
Federalist No. 70
Argues in favor of the unitary executive created by Article II of the Constitution. A unitary executive (president) is necessary to ensure accountability in government, and to enable the president to defend against legislative encroachments on their power.
Baker v. Carr (1961)
Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)
Wisconsin's requirement that all parents send their children to school until age 16 violated the 1st Amendment by criminalizing the conduct of parents who refused to send children to school for religious reasons was. The free exercise of religion under the 1st Amendment outweighed the State's interests in compelling school interest beyond the 8th grade.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)
The 1st Amendment prohibited the limitation of corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections. Political speech is indispensable to democracy, which is no less true if the speech comes from a corporation.
Letter from a Birmingham Jail
A letter written by Martin Luther King Jr. after being imprisoned as a participant in nonviolent demonstrations against segregation.
Preaches the connection between all humans, regardless of race. Is a declaration of the power of a black man.
Establishes a criteria by which to equivocally attack both segregation and silence in the face of it.
Moderation allows injustice to flourish; the only way to truly enact change and help mankind transcend its limitations is to act with and embrace extremism.
Criticizes the church for supporting a group mentality of injustice rather than forcing individuals to confront their failures and change.
All individuals have the right and responsibility to challenge unjust laws.
Individual action can inspire and change people in pursuit of a world free of hatred.
Federalist No. 78
Discusses the power of judicial review. Argues that the federal courts have the job of determining whether acts of Congress are constitutional and what must be done if government is faced with things that go against the ideas in the Constitution.