Civil rights issues and legal concerns have been with us from the earliest days of the country. One of the strongest statements made was in 1776: The Declaration of Independence, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

The following year, in 1787, the Constitution of the United States was drafted. It set up a system of checks and balances but did not include a statement about civil or individual rights. Nor was it inclusive of all peoples. The Constitution said what the government could do but did not say what it could not do. It provisions was limited to propertied white men only.

The American Bill of Rights was championed by Thomas Jefferson and drafted by James Madison. After considerable discussion it was adopted in 1791 becoming the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Together they protect those "unalienable rights" originally mentioned in the Declaration of Independence. They were also called "natural rights," and "the great rights of mankind."

They included, among other rights, the right to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, right to privacy, the right to be treated equally before the law, and the right to be treated fairly by the government.

But by the 1850's civil rights issues had taken a back seat in the nation only to become a center of focus after the Supreme Court decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford. The case involves a man named Dred Scott, a slave owned by a Dr. Emerson, who was taken from Missouri to a free state and then back again to Missouri. Scott sued for his freedom, on the basis of seven years of residence in a free territory.

In a 7-2 vote, the predominately proslavery Supreme Court decided that Congress did not have the power to prohibit slavery in the territories, making the already repealed Missouri Compromise of 1820 unconstitutional. The Court also stated that blacks were not citizens of the United States, could not become citizens, and could not sue in a court.

All this helped hasten the arrival of the Civil War. It further polarized the already tense relations between Northerners and Southerners

On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation as the nation approached its third year of the civil war. The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and hence forward shall be free." >>> For more on this topic please read: Emancipation Proclamation. Use your browser's Back button to return here.

Following the Civil War three important constitutional amendments were added. The 13th Amendment in 1865 abolished slavery, but did not give blacks equality. Then, congress passed the Civil Rights act of 1866: "all persons shall have the same rights...to make and enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, give evidence, and to the full and equal benefit of all laws..." It was vetoed by Andrew Johnson. Congress overrode his veto and passed the 14th Amendment in 1868: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." The 15th Amendment (1870), declared it illegal to deprive any citizen of the franchise because of race.

The Civil Rights Act of 1871 made it a crime to deny any citizen equal protection under the law by means of "force, intimidation or threat."

The Civil Rights Act of 1875 guaranteed blacks the right to use public accommodations. . It also gave the right to sue for personal damages; gave federal courts exclusive jurisdiction over all cases arising under the act and made it a misdemeanor to bar any qualified person from serving as a grand or petit juror. This was last piece of civil rights legislation passed until 1957. It should also be noted that this legislation was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1883

By the mid-1880s, the political climate was such that the U.S. public had become indifferent to issues of social justice. This shift in attitude was exemplified by the Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), which upheld the principle of "separate but equal" facilities for blacks and whites and legally instituted the system of segregation. The system endured until it was overturned by Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas (1954), in which the Supreme Court declared that separate educational facilities were "inherently unequal." *

During the early part of the 20th century the only signifant piece of legislature was the passing of the 19th Amendment in 1920: "The rights of citizens...to vote shall not be denied or abridged...on account of sex."

Then in mid-century, under intense public pressure brought about by massive demonstrations during the civil rights movement of 1957 to 1965, Congress enacted new legislation in an attempt to overcome local and state obstruction to the exercise of citizenship rights by blacks. * Three new civil rights acts were enacted by Congress.

The second was the Civil Rights Act of 1960. It was passed to combat continued interference with the right to vote and terrorist activity against African-Americans. It was designed to end discriminatory registration practices in south and interference with federal suits and investigations. It was largely ineffective because of weak enforcement mechanisms.

The Equal Pay Act was passed in 1963. It prohibits sex-based pay differentials on jobs.

Finally, these efforts culminated in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited discrimination in employment and established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. This major piece of legislation also banned discrimination in public accommodations connected with interstate commerce. * It included 11 titles which dealt with voting practices, segregation, provided financial aid to desegregating schools, extended the life of the Civil Rights Commission for four more years, outlawed federal funds for educational institutions or programs practicing discrimination, outlawed employment and union discrimination, required gathering census data by race in some areas, prevented federal courts from sending a civil rights case back to state or local courts, established the Community Relations Service (CRS) to arbitrate local race problems and provided right of jury trial in any case that arose from any section of the act.

Civil Rights Act of 1964: Title VII prohibits employment discrimination based on race, sex, national origin, or religion. Title VI prohibits public access discrimination, leading to school desegregation. Title VIII is the original "federal fair housing law," later amended in 1988.

The next major legislative act was The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (see picture of signing above) and the 1965 Executive Order 11246. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 allowed federal registrars to replace state officials in areas in which less than 50% of the adult population had voted in the previous general election. It gave them the power to suspend all literacy and similar discriminatory tests, and register to vote those citizens who were otherwise qualified to vote. The 1965 Executive Order 11246 established affirmative action requirements of government contractors and subcontractors.

Then, in 1967 Congress passed the ADEA which prohibits age discrimination for 40-65 year olds This act was amended in 1986 to remove the 65 year old age cap. (Note: Nebraska has a 70 year old age limit.)

The Civil Rights Act of 1968, passed after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. extended these guarantees to housing and real estate. It was the last major piece of civil rights legislation.

The year 1968 also saw the passing of the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 which requires accessibility for disabled in buildings and facilities financed with federal funds. §504 of the Rehab Act of 1973 -- bars federal contractors or subcontractors from employment discrimination on the basis of disability.

Since the period of the sixties little legislature has been enacted. Today, many civil rights leaders feel that the country is returning to a political climate where the U.S. public is indifferent to issues of social justice. They feel that inroads to repeal or limit the legislative gains in the 50's and 60's are well underway; and point to affirmative action issues and recent Supreme Court decisions. The problem, they say, is not legislative however. It is in enforcement and willingness of US Supreme Court to enforce existing laws.

Nevertheless, Congress passed The Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 which requires disabled access for multifamily housing intended for first occupancy after March 13, 1991; the Air Carriers Access Act of 1989 which requires disabled access in construction of terminal facilities owned or operated by an air carrier; and the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act. Of note regarding this last act is Title I which prohibits disability discrimination by employers; Titles II and III which require disability access in all places of public accommodation and business for first occupancy after January 26, 1993 or for occupancy for new alterations, and all state and local government facilities, after January 26, 1992.

The Civil Rights Act of 1991 is, more or less, and addendum to civil rights legislature. It's intent is to ease the burden on workers suing to prove job discrimination. According to the legislation, the purposes of this Act are to "(1) respond to the Supreme Court's recent decisions by restoring the civil rights protections that were dramatically limited by those decisions; and (2) strengthen existing protections and remedies available under Federal civil rights laws to provide more effective deterrence and adequate compensation for victims of discrimination."

References:
The Bill of Rights: A BRIEF HISTORY
A SHORT HISTORY OF AMERICAN CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS
* Civil Rights and other Remedies
Ronald L. Lewis, Grolier Interactive Inc.