Chapter 6 synthesis

Civil Rights Synthesis

The 14^th amendment is most likely the most powerful and important amendment out of the 27. Although on the outside it seems to simply state that it grants every person the United States the right to U.S citizenship and equal protection under the law, it also acts as a hidden mastermind that influences all the other amendments. If, by any chance the legitimacy of the other amendments are questioned or denied, the 14^th amendment can act as the second wall of defense that protects it and reenforces it, as shown in court cases such as Gitlow v. New York. Even so, equality has still yet to be achieved. Affirmative action is the process of providing full opportunity and in employment and education for disadvantaged groups. However, too much of it could lead to reverse discrimination, where the group that was originally better off, take men for example, becomes the disadvantaged group. Today many different racial and minority groups still face barriers in gaining equal rights and treatment, these groups including African Americans, women, Native Americans, and Asian Americans.

The Equal Protection Clause states that no person shall be denied equal treatment under the law. However, it actually took quite long for this clause to be actually enforced, and still has yet to be improved on today. For example, in the case of Plessy v. Ferguson, the SC stated that it was perfectly fine to give blacks and whites different public facilities as long as they were equal in quality. Of course, these facilities were definitely not equal and quality and blacks were being denied equal treatment under the law. It wasn't until later on in the case of Brown v. Board of Education that overturned the Plessy decision and allowed blacks to have the same access to eduction as whites.

However, Brown v. Board of Education was only a small step for improving the overall living standard and rights for blacks. Later on, Congress passed three acts: the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination against providing housing, the Civil Rights Act of 1968, which prohibited discrimination in selling real estate, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibited discrimination in voting and registration. These acts helped improve the situation by establishing dejure equality, equal by law, but still didn't solve the whole case for de facto equality, actual equality. Even today, de facto equality has still yet to be achieved.

Today, women are actually quite successful. They hold many important jobs and no longer hold the stereotypical label of simply being a housewife. Women have shown to be more likely to gain admission to college and do well in school. Some, such as Sarah Palin and Sandra Day O'Conner, even hold high government positions. Even so, women still can't quite reach equal ground with men. It is proven that on average, women only paid 80% the amount men are paid. The imaginary glass ceiling still exists, and women today are still fighting to break it.

Native Americans are a poor group who have been undermined for quite a long time. After, centuries of being deprived of home land and natural right, they finally have an official government agency established as part of the Department of Interior. In addition, the Bureau of Indian Affairs is responsible of making sure that Native Americans are provided legislative benefits. Although today many Native Americans still live in poverty, casinos help boost their economy grow and thrive.

Asian Americans are actually a quite underrated group. They have make up a high percentage of leading university students and hold the highest percentage for 2 parent families, yet Asians account for only 10 individuals of congress and 2% of managerial jobs. In the past, Asians have very well suffered just as much as any other minority groups, but are not as focused on like blacks. For example, for a period of time, Asian immigrants were actually prohibited from coming over to the United States due to a common fear that they would take away job opportunities.

Equality is a very complicated concept. Even after hundreds of years, the United States still fails to completely establish it, and even now it still seems far from perfect. The founders of the United States, who were white men, still stand at the top for everything, from jobs, to housing, and paychecks. The glass ceiling is still a barrier for many disadvantaged groups to overcome.