Lia Sheahan

Lia Sheahan

AP Government and Politics summer assignment

The cases that were assigned to me this summer were Engel V. Vitale, U.S. V. Lopez, and Citizens United V. FEC. These three cases relate to different modern-day issues, as well as the amendments of the constitution. Even though they are all landmark cases because of different circumstances, we can learn something from all of them to help better our country.

Engel V. Vitale was a trial between the petitioner Steven I. Engel, and the respondent William J. Vitale. In 1958, a group of students and parents in Hyde Park, New York, led by Steven I. Engel, a Jewish man, objected to a new optional prayer that would be held during the school day, introduced by the New York Board of Regents. The parents sued the school board president, William J. Vitale. The group of parents argued that the addition of the prayer was in itself unconstitutional, due to it being “inconsistent with the Establishment Clause.” The Establishment Clause is the clause in the First Amendment that prohibits the endorsement of religion by the government. The opposition argued that since the prayer was voluntary, it was in fact constitutional, because it encouraged the act of freely participating in one’s religion of choice. The case was won in favor of the side of Engel, with the case moving from the New York Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court, with Justice Black leading the majority, including Chief Justice Warren.

The trial for U.S. V. Lopez took place after a teenager named Alfonso Lopez brought a concealed weapon into his San Antonio high school. Lopez was first charged in a federal district court of San Antonio with violating a Texas law that prohibited firearms in schools, but those charges were dropped, but he was charged again with violating the Guns-Free Schools act, a federal law that also prohibited the presence of guns on school grounds. Lopez then appealed to the Supreme Court, citing that since schools in the U.S. operate on a state and not federal level, the Guns-Free Schools Act would not be valid grounds to send him to prison for the 5 year sentence. Lopez won his case, gaining the approval of the majority led by Chief Justice William Rehnquist, and the charges were overturned.

Citizens United V. FEC is a case that arose when the conservative group ‘Citizens United’ wanted to advertise and distribute their documentary, Hillary: The Movie, a highly critical film centered around the political candidate Hillary Clinton, before the 2008 elections. This violated the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, which prohibits “electioneering communication” within 60 days of an election. The Supreme Court then ruled that the act itself was in violation of the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech. Chief Justice John Roberts voted towards the concurrence.

Engel V. Vitale most closely connects to the Establishment Clause of the 1st Amendment, which ensures that matters of church and state stay separate. This reflects the controversy surrounding opinions of abortion by evangelical politicians. U.S. V. Lopez relates most closely to the 10th amendment, which insures that whatever powers do not go to the federal government will go to the states. This issue also relates to sanctuary cities and how state police vs. ICE deal with illegal immigrants. Citizens united V. FEC ties to the 1st amendment’s protection of freedom of press and speech. This relates to social media and how some groups use free speech as an excuse to be hateful.