Chapter 1
This term is generally used to describe the formal institutions through which a territory and its people are ruled.
What is Government?
This group supported a strong central government and the ratification of the Constitution.
Who were the Federalists?
This constitutional principle divides power between national and state governments, allowing each level to exercise authority in certain areas while sharing others like taxation and law enforcement.
What is federalism?
These protections, such as freedom of speech and the right to privacy, shield individuals from improper or excessive government action and are primarily found in the Bill of Rights.
What are civil liberties?
This term refers to the system of laws and customs that enforced racial segregation and disenfranchised Black Americans in the South from the late 19th century through the mid-20th century.
What is the Jim Crow Era?
In this form of democracy, citizens vote directly on laws and policies; in the other, they elect officials to make decisions on their behalf.
What are direct democracy and representative democracy?
This first governing document of the United States created a loose alliance of states with a weak central government that lacked the power to tax or regulate commerce.
What are the Articles of Confederation?
Often described as “layer cake federalism,” this model views state and national governments as having distinct and separate areas of authority, with minimal overlap in responsibilities.
What is dual federalism?
Issued on January 1, 1863, this presidential proclamation declared that all slaves in Confederate-held territory were to be set free.
What is the Emancipation Proclamation?
Written in 1963, this powerful letter defends nonviolent protest and criticizes white moderates for their inaction during the struggle for racial justice.
What is "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"?
This term describes the belief that ordinary citizens can influence what the government does.
What is political efficacy?
These powers are explicitly listed in the U.S. Constitution and granted to the federal government, while their counterparts are retained by the states under the Tenth Amendment.
What are expressed powers and reserved powers?
Also known as the “elastic clause,” this provision in Article I, Section 8 gives Congress the authority to make laws required to carry out its enumerated powers, allowing flexibility in legislative action.
What is the Necessary and Proper Clause?
Through the doctrine of incorporation, this amendment has been used by the Supreme Court to apply most of the Bill of Rights to the states.
14th Amendment
This type of segregation is enforced by law, while the other results from social, economic, or cultural practices without legal mandate.
What are de jure and de facto segregation?
This system of rule permits citizens to play a significant role in the governmental process, often through the election of public officials.
What is democracy?
In this essay, James Madison argued that a large republic would help control the dangers of factions by diluting their influence across a wide and diverse population.
What is Federalist Paper No. 10?
These federal funds are provided to state and local governments to support programs ranging from education to **transportation**(Hey, that's important!!!), often with conditions attached that influence state policy.
What are grants-in-aid?
This 1803 Supreme Court case established the principle of judicial review, allowing courts to strike down laws that violate the Constitution.
What is Marbury v. Madison?
This legal principle, protected in the Constitution, ensures that a person cannot be held in jail without being brought before a judge and informed of the charges.
What is habeas corpus?
Liberty, democracy, equality, and justice, principles proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, continue to shape this shared set of beliefs and values held by most citizens.
What is political culture?
Proposed during the Constitutional Convention, this plan favored equal protection for each state in Congress, while its rival called for representation based on population.
What are the New Jersey Plan and the Virgina Plan?
This amendment protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures and requires that warrants be issued only with probable cause.
Although not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution, the Supreme Court has interpreted this “right” as being implied by several amendments, including the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 9th.
What is the right to privacy?
This 2012 executive initiative provides temporary protection from deportation and work authorization to undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, but does not grant permanent legal status.
What is DACA?