Active Citizens 101 - National Service Inclusion Project

Procedures, cont.
4. Distribute Handout 4.1 (b) A History of
Discrimination. Ask participants to read this
section only. Emphasize that the Fourteenth
Amendment is critical to rights in the U.S. It
established the principle that states, as well
as the national government, may not deny
equal protection under the law. No longer
could states pass laws that treated some
groups of people unfairly. Subsequent decisions
of the Supreme Court have extended
the Fourteenth Amendment to assure that
the Bill of Rights protections against abuses
by the national government also protect
people against laws and actions of state
governments. Mention the fact that the historical
time and the philosophy of Justices
on the Supreme Court influence how the
Constitution is interpreted.
Debrief this section by asking: How did the
Thirteenth Amendment affect African Americans
Which amendment said states had to
respect everybody's rights Why was Homer
Plessy against segregation What did the
“separate but equal” rule mean
You may want to supplement this section
with further information—books, pictures,
videos—on race discrimination in U.S. history
(making this a two-day lesson). Some
participants may have little understanding of
the injustice that African Americans have
endured in this country (it is interesting to
note that Homer Plessy's resistance was not
an isolated action. It was coordinated by a
group of Louisiana blacks who hoped that
this type of segregation would be held illegal
under the Fourteenth Amendment).
5. Before reading the next section “The
Supreme Court Thinks Again,” ask participants
how had times changed by 1954
Would there be different Justices Times
had changed: many African Americans had
moved north, President Truman had ordered
the integration of the armed forces,
the nation had over 50 years of segregation
history to analyze, and knowledge of social
sciences such as psychology and sociology
had increased. Note also that many of the
Justices in 1954 had been appointed at a
time when people were winning new rights
and benefits (union rights, social security for
the old, minimum wage, etc.), and by a
President more attuned to civil rights. As
participants may realize, Presidents tend to
appoint Justices who share their political
point of view. Be sure participants know that
Justices are appointed for life.
6. Ask participants to read “The Supreme
Court Thinks Again.” Examine the section
on the doll test with participants. The Brown
decision was the first time the Supreme
Court footnoted social science data in giving
an opinion. The Brown study was one of
several cited to show that racism, of which
segregation was a part, was damaging to
American blacks. While there are criticisms
both of Clark's study and of the Court's inclusion
of such studies, they are part of one
of the most important decisions in the
Court's history. Most folks usually find the
doll test illuminating and memorable. Remind
participants that the test was made
when segregation was common in many
parts of the United States.
You can amplify the reaction of whites both
in the South and in other parts of the country
to the Brown decision and the strength and
creativity of the black civil rights movement.
Mention that the women's movement, Native
American movement, and struggles of
other minority groups owed much to the civil
DRAFT
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