Peyton Hinterhauser
AP U.S. Government and Politics
Ms.Gordon
Ms.Gordon
8/19/19
Throughout the years, the Supreme Court has seen many cases. To fully understand how the Court works and the rulings they come to, you must understand a few of the key cases in their history. Three of those cases are analyzed below. Those cases are Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), and Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 310 (2010).
Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
The first case being analyzed is one of the most pivotal cases of the civil rights movement, Brown v. BOE. The now well known case first started in Topeka, Kansa. In 1951, Linda Brown’s father filed a lawsuit against the Topeka, Kansas board of education. He argued that segregated schools were unconstitutional because it violated the Equal Protection under the Fourteenth Amendment. However, when brought to the United States district court for Kansas the court ruled in favor of the Board of Education citing the “separate but equal” precedent set by the Supreme Court case in 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson. Brown v. BOE along with four other similar cases were then brought to the Supreme Court in December 1952. The case so controversial that no decision was reached. During the Court’s recess Chief Justice Vinson died and Chief Justice Earl Warren was appointed. In December 1953 the Court heard the case again. Chief Justice Warren gave the Opinion on May 17, 1954. Unsurprisingly, the majority liberal Court came to the unanimous decision that “separate is not equal” and that segregation violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. This case relates to modern society because to this day we still struggle with degrees of segregation. Recently, Mayor Rahm Emanuel closed 49 public schools on the South Side of Chicago. 88% of the students affected were black. Some residents complained that their children must travel longer distances to go to school, and no longer have the option to go to neighborhood schools. The only schools closed were located on the South Side, which primarily impacted people of color.
Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973)
The next case to be analyzed is Roe v. Wade. In 1970, a young Texan woman named Norma McCorvey was looking to have an abortion. Although abortion was legal in Texas, it was only for the purpose of saving the mother’s life. McCorvey, also known as Jane Row, filed a lawsuit to challenge the texas law against Henry Wade, the district attorney of Dallas County where Norma lived. Even though a Texas district court ruled the abortion law illigal unconstituional, Wade declared he’d countinue to prosecute doctors who performed abortions. On December 13, 1971, the case was first argued before the US Supreme Court, then argued again October 11, 1972. On January 22, 1973, in a 7-2 decision the US Supreme Court ruled the Texas abortion law unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice BlackMun gave the opinion of the Court. This case is relevant today because it relates to the recent blocking of the Ohio ban on abortion after 6 weeks under the decision made by the Roe v. Wade case in 1973.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 310 (2010)
Finally, the last case to be analyzed is Citizens United v. Federal Election Commision. In 2008, Citizens United released a documentary about then Presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton. The documentary contained biased information on Hillary Clinton. They tried to release it 30 days prior to the primary election, but the FEC ruled that it violated federal law. This ruling led to the case of Citizens United v. FEC (Federal Election Commission). They believed the BCRA (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act) violated their First Amendment rights. It was upheld by the District Court of the District of Columbia, and later appealed to the Supreme Court with John Roberts as Chief Justice. On January 21, 2010, the Court ruled it unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment. This case is relevant to today because with the upcoming elections, wealthy corporations shouldn’t have the ability to influence opinions that favor their views.
Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973)
The next case to be analyzed is Roe v. Wade. In 1970, a young Texan woman named Norma McCorvey was looking to have an abortion. Although abortion was legal in Texas, it was only for the purpose of saving the mother’s life. McCorvey, also known as Jane Row, filed a lawsuit to challenge the texas law against Henry Wade, the district attorney of Dallas County where Norma lived. Even though a Texas district court ruled the abortion law illigal unconstituional, Wade declared he’d countinue to prosecute doctors who performed abortions. On December 13, 1971, the case was first argued before the US Supreme Court, then argued again October 11, 1972. On January 22, 1973, in a 7-2 decision the US Supreme Court ruled the Texas abortion law unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment. Justice BlackMun gave the opinion of the Court. This case is relevant today because it relates to the recent blocking of the Ohio ban on abortion after 6 weeks under the decision made by the Roe v. Wade case in 1973.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 U.S. 310 (2010)
Finally, the last case to be analyzed is Citizens United v. Federal Election Commision. In 2008, Citizens United released a documentary about then Presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton. The documentary contained biased information on Hillary Clinton. They tried to release it 30 days prior to the primary election, but the FEC ruled that it violated federal law. This ruling led to the case of Citizens United v. FEC (Federal Election Commission). They believed the BCRA (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act) violated their First Amendment rights. It was upheld by the District Court of the District of Columbia, and later appealed to the Supreme Court with John Roberts as Chief Justice. On January 21, 2010, the Court ruled it unconstitutional because it violated the First Amendment. This case is relevant to today because with the upcoming elections, wealthy corporations shouldn’t have the ability to influence opinions that favor their views.
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