CHAPTER 5: Civil Rights
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Generally, the term civil rights refers to the rights of all Americans to equal treatment under the law, as
provided by the __________ to the Constitution.
a. First Amendment
b. Fourth Amendment
c. Eighth Amendment
d. Fourteenth Amendment
e. Nineteenth Amendment
ANS: D
REF: 99
2. The equal protection clause of the __________ reads: “No State shall … deny to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
a. First Amendment
b. Fifth Amendment
c. Thirteenth Amendment
d. Fourteenth Amendment
e. Nineteenth Amendment
ANS: D
REF: 99
3. Our First Amendment rights are considered __________ rights.
a. contingent
b. suspect
c. conditional
d. fundamental
e. tentative
ANS: D
REF: 99
4. If a law or action prevents some group of persons from exercising a fundamental right, the law or
action will be subject to the __________ standard for determining whether the equal protection clause
has been violated.
a. “intermediate scrutiny”
b. “ordinary scrutiny”
c. “strict scrutiny”
d. “rational basis”
e. “exacting scrutiny”
ANS: C
REF: 99 | 100
5. Under the __________standard, a law or action that discriminates against a particular group or class of
individuals must be necessary to promote a compelling state interest and must be narrowly tailored to
meet that interest in order to find that the equal protection clause has not been violated.
a. “intermediate scrutiny”
b. “ordinary scrutiny”
c. “strict scrutiny”
d. “rational basis”
e. “exacting scrutiny”
ANS: C
REF: 99 | 100
6. A law based on a suspect classification is subject to __________ scrutiny by the courts.
a. ordinary
b. intermediate
c. exacting
d. strict
e. minimal
ANS: D
REF: 100
7. A law based on race is subject to strict scrutiny by the courts, because race is considered a(n)
__________classification.
a. problematic
b. ambiguous
c. acceptable
d. questionable
e. suspect
ANS: E
REF: 100
8. Under the “intermediate scrutiny” standard, laws based on gender classifications are permissible if
they are
a. “necessary to promote a compelling state interest.”
b. “substantially related to the achievement of an important governmental objective.”
c. a “reasonable way” to achieve a legitimate government objective.
d. a rational way to treat people differently.
e. justified by a compelling state interest.
ANS: B
REF: 100
9. In United States v. Virginia (1996), the Supreme Court held that
a. a state law punishing females but not males for statutory rape violated the equal
protection clause.
b. males could be excluded from a state school of nursing for women.
c. a state law prohibiting the sale of beer to males under twenty-one years of age and to
females under eighteen years was valid.
d. Virginia Military Institute, a state-financed institution, violated the equal protection clause
by refusing to accept female applicants.
e. a state law allowing wives to obtain alimony judgments against husbands but preventing
husbands from receiving alimony from wives did not violate the equal protection clause.
ANS: D
REF: 100
10. Few laws evaluated under the __________ are found invalid, because few laws are truly unreasonable.
a. rational basis test
b. “intermediate scrutiny” standard
c. “exacting scrutiny standard
d. “strict scrutiny” standard
e. “middle level scrutiny” standard
ANS: A
REF: 100
11. The equal protection clause was originally intended to protect __________ after the Civil War.
a. women
b. children
c. property owners
d. newly freed slaves
e. immigrants
ANS: D
REF: 101
12. The Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
a. granted freedom to the slaves.
b. required an end to segregation.
c. established the separate-but-equal doctrine.
d. outlawed “Jim Crow” laws.
e. granted former slaves the right to vote.
ANS: A
REF: 101
13. The __________ stated that voting rights could not be abridged on account of race.
a. Thirteenth Amendment
b. Fourteenth Amendment
c. Fifteenth Amendment
d. Nineteenth Amendment
e. Twentieth Amendment
ANS: C
REF: 101
14. “Jim Crow” laws
a. were segregation laws, separating the white community from the black community.
b. were justified by the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
(1954).
c. were prohibited by the Thirteenth Amendment.
d. required an end to segregation.
e. were designed to achieve racial equality.
ANS: A
REF: 101
15. In Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), the Supreme Court
a. declared that African Americans had a right to ride in railway cars reserved for whites.
b. ordered the public schools to be racially integrated.
c. established the separate-but-equal doctrine.
d. struck down “Jim Crow” laws as unconstitutional.
e. provided a constitutional basis for slavery.
ANS: C
REF: 101
16. The Supreme Court established the separate-but-equal doctrine in
a. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954).
b. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896).
c. Brown II (1955).
d. United States v. Virginia (1996).
e. Craig v. Boren (1976).
ANS: B
REF: 101
17. The separate-but-equal doctrine
a. was rooted in the notion that “our Constitution is colorblind.”
b. is a Supreme Court doctrine holding that the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth
Amendment prohibits racial segregation.
c. was used to justify racial segregation in many areas of American life for nearly
sixty years.
d. is used to justify affirmative action programs.
e. is used to justify same-sex marriage.
ANS: C
REF: 101 | 102
18. The Supreme Court
a. overturned the separate-but-equal doctrine in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
(1954).
b. overturned the separate-but-equal doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896).
c. upheld the separate-but-equal doctrine in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954).
d. extended the separate-but-equal doctrine to justify classifications based on gender in Craig
v. Boren (1976).
e. upheld the separate-but-equal doctrine in Brown II (1955).
ANS: A
REF: 101 | 102
19. In Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), the Supreme Court held that segregation by race
__________ was unconstitutional.
a. on buses
b. in restaurants
c. in public education
d. in housing
e. on railroads
ANS: C
REF: 102
20. In Brown II (1955), the Supreme Court ordered desegregation to begin
a. “immediately.”
b. “with caution and care.”
c. “with all deliberate speed.”
d. “without undue delay.”
e. “with unchecked speed.”
ANS: C
REF: 102
21. Only after __________federalized the Arkansas National Guard and sent in additional troops did
Central High School in Little Rock finally become integrated.
a. the Supreme Court
b. Governor Orval Faubus
c. the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
d. President Dwight D. Eisenhower
e. Rosa Parks
ANS: D
REF: 102
22. Racial segregation that occurs not as a result of deliberate intentions but because of social and
economic conditions and residential patterns is called __________ segregation.
a. de facto
b. de jure
c. de minimis
d. ex post facto
e. de novo
ANS: A
REF: 102
23. Today, busing orders to end __________segregation are not upheld by the courts.
a. de minimis
b. ex post facto
c. de novo
d. de facto
e. de jure
ANS: D
REF: 102
24. The arrest of Rosa Parks for violating local segregation laws spurred the local African American
community to organize a
a. series of nonviolent sit-ins in Greensboro, North Carolina.
b. year-long boycott of the bus system in Montgomery, Alabama.
c. demonstration in Selma, Alabama.
d. protest march in Washington, D.C.
e. rally on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
ANS: B
REF: 103
25. One of the tactics used by the civil rights protestors in the 1960s was __________, the deliberate and
public refusal to obey laws considered unjust.
a. “Jim Crow”
b. suffrage
c. affirmative action
d. civil disobedience
e. internment
ANS: D
REF: 103
26. A sit-in is a tactic of __________ that was used successfully in the civil rights movement.
a. nonviolent civil disobedience
b. violent behavior
c. black separatism
d. de jure segregation
e. de facto segregation
ANS: A
REF: 103
27. Discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, and national origin in public places of
accommodation and in employment was outlawed by the
a. Fourteenth Amendment.
b. Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954).
c. Civil Rights Act of 1964.
d. Voting Rights Act of 1965.
e. Civil Rights Act of 1968.
ANS: C
REF: 104
28. The __________provided that federal funds could be withheld from any federal or state government
project or facility that practiced any form of discrimination.
a. Thirteenth Amendment
b. Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
c. Civil Rights Act of 1964
d. Supreme Court’s decision in Brown II (1955)
e. Fifteenth Amendment
ANS: C
REF: 104
29. The __________ made it illegal to interfere with anyone’s right to vote in any election held in
this country.
a. Help America Vote Act of 2002
b. Fifteenth Amendment
c. Civil Rights Act of 1968
d. Voting Rights Act of 1965
e. Nineteenth Amendment
ANS: D
REF: 104
30. The Civil Rights Act of 1968 prohibited discrimination in
a. the military.
b. public schools.
c. employment.
d. college admissions.
e. housing.
ANS: E
REF: 104
31. In the 1960s, __________ called for black separatism.
a. The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
b. Rosa Parks
c. Black Muslim leader Malcolm X
d. Colin Powell
e. Condoleezza Rice
ANS: C
REF: 104
32. The poverty rate for blacks is roughly __________ that for whites.
a. equal to
b. two times
c. three times
d. five times
e. six times
ANS: C
REF: 105
33. The first “woman’s rights” convention was organized in 1848 by
a. Susan B. Anthony.
b. Lucy Stone.
c. Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
d. Lucy Stone and Carrie Chapman Catt.
e. NOW, the National Organization for Women.
ANS: C
REF: 105
34. The goal of the National American Woman Suffrage Association was
a. to increase the number of women in Congress.
b. the enfranchisement of women.
c. to elect a woman president of the United States.
d. the abolition of slavery.
e. ending the Civil War.
ANS: B
REF: 106
35. The Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in __________, giving women the right to
vote.
a. 1848
b. 1869
c. 1918
d. 1920
e. 1936
ANS: D
REF: 106
36. Feminism is best defined as
a. a policy under which a specific number of jobs or promotions are given to members of
selected groups.
b. unwanted physical contact of a sexual nature that interferes with a recipient’s job
performance.
c. the right to vote; the franchise.
d. an ideology that supports the “glass ceiling” in the workplace.
e. the doctrine advocating full political, economic, and social equality for women.
ANS: E
REF: 106
37. Of the more than ten thousand members who have served in the U.S. House of Representatives, only
__________ have been women.
a. 1 percent
b. 5 percent
c. 15 percent
d. 25 percent
e. 30 percent
ANS: A
REF: 106
38. Nancy Pelosi was the first woman to
a. be elected to the U.S. Senate.
b. serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
c. run for vice president of the United States.
d. serve as a governor.
e. be elected Speaker of the House of Representatives.
ANS: E
REF: 107
39. __________ appointed the first woman to a cabinet post.
a. Franklin D. Roosevelt
b. John F. Kennedy
c. Bill Clinton
d. George W. Bush
e. Barack Obama
ANS: A
REF: 107
40. The first woman to serve as a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court was appointed by
a. Ronald Reagan.
b. George H.W. Bush.
c. George W. Bush.
d. Jimmy Carter.
e. Barack Obama.
ANS: A
REF: 108
41. __________was the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court.
a. Ruth Bader Ginsburg
b. Condoleezza Rice
c. Sandra Day O’Connor
d. Sonia Sotomayor
e. Elena Kagan
ANS: C
REF: 108
42. Women now constitute nearly __________of state legislators.
a. one-fourth
b. one-third
c. one-half
d. two-thirds
e. three-fourths
ANS: A
REF: 108
43. Generally, women have been more successful politically in the __________ states than elsewhere.
a. eastern
b. western
c. northern
d. southern
e. midwestern
ANS: B
REF: 108
44. It is estimated that for every dollar earned by men, women earn about
a. two dollars.
b. 99 cents.
c. 80 cents.
d. 65 cents.
e. 58 cents.
ANS: C
REF: 108
45. In 1963, when the Equal Pay Act was enacted, women earned __________ for every dollar earned by
men.
a. 27 cents
b. 43 cents
c. 58 cents
d. 66 cents
e. 74 cents
ANS: C
REF: 108
46. The __________, an invisible but real discriminatory barrier, prevents women and minorities from
rising to top positions of power or responsibility.
a. glass ceiling
b. war on women
c. feminist mystique
d. glass elevator
e. executive escalator
ANS: A
REF: 108
47. The Supreme Court has made it clear that sexual harassment
a. includes harassment by members of the same sex.
b. cases can no longer be heard in the courts.
c. will not be interpreted to include the harassment of employees by their supervisors.
d. will no longer include hostile environment harassment.
e. victims cannot seek back pay and job reinstatement.
ANS: A
REF: 109
48. The __________ greatly expanded the remedies available for victims of sexual harassment, including
back pay, job reinstatement, and other compensation.
a. Civil Rights Act of 1964
b. Civil Rights Act of 1968
c. Equal Pay Act of 1963
d. Civil Rights Act of 1991
e. Nineteenth Amendment
ANS: D
REF: 109
49. __________ constitute the largest ethnic minority in the United States.
a. Latinos
b. Native Americans
c. Asian Americans
d. African Americans
e. Arab Americans
ANS: A
REF: 109
50. By 2050, Latinos are expected to constitute about __________ of the U.S. population.
a. 10 percent
b. 17 percent
c. 23 percent
d. 30 percent
e. 52 percent
ANS: D
REF: 109
51. Most Hispanics living in the United States, by place of origin, are from
a. Mexico.
b. Cuba.
c. Puerto Rico.
d. Central America.
e. South America.
ANS: A
REF: 110
52. Mexican Americans constitute about __________ of the Latino population living in the United States.
a. 4 percent
b. 7 percent
c. 9 percent
d. 15 percent
e. 65 percent
ANS: E
REF: 110
53. Today, more than __________ of the state legislators in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, New
Mexico, and Texas are of Hispanic ancestry.
a. 5 percent
b. 10 percent
c. 16 percent
d. 23 percent
e. 34 percent
ANS: A
REF: 110
54. Actions taken under an executive order issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1942 evacuated
most of the West Coast __________ population to internment camps or “relocation centers.”
a. Native American
b. Japanese American
c. Russian American
d. German American
e. Chinese American
ANS: B
REF: 111
55. Nearly __________ of Asian Americans over the age of twenty-five have college degrees.
a. 7 percent
b. 13 percent
c. 24 percent
d. 31 percent
e. 40 percent
ANS: E
REF: 111
56. In 1789, Congress designated the Native American tribes as __________ so that the government could
sign land and boundary treaties with them.
a. a confederation
b. sovereign states
c. enemies
d. foreign nations
e. American citizens
ANS: D
REF: 112
57. Native Americans had no civil rights under U.S. laws until
a. 1787, when the Northwest Ordinance was passed.
b. 1824, when Congress established the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
c. the late 1880s, when U.S. policy focused on the assimilation of Native Americans into
American society.
d. 1924, when the citizenship rights spelled out in the Fourteenth Amendment were extended
to American Indians.
e. 1973, when supporters of the American Indian Movement took over Wounded Knee,
South Dakota, to protest the government’s policy toward Native Americans.
ANS: D
REF: 112
58. As a result of the 2012 elections,
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
the number of Latinos serving in Congress was reduced from thirty-one to fourteen.
Congress no longer has any members who are Buddhists, Muslims, or Hindus.
twenty members of the U.S. Senate were now women.
about 8 percent of the House of Representatives are female.
same-sex marriage is legal in only three states.
ANS: C
REF: 113
59. The __________ requires that all public buildings and public services be accessible to persons with
disabilities.
a. Rehabilitation Act of 1973
b. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
c. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
d. Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975
e. Civil Rights Act of 1964
ANS: C
REF: 114
60. The 1969 Stonewall Inn uprising launched the
a. women’s movement.
b. gay power movement.
c. civil rights movement.
d. movement to empower persons with disabilities.
e. affirmative action movement.
ANS: B
REF: 116
61. In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that
a. state laws banning same-sex marriage violate the equal protection clause of the
U.S. Constitution.
b. all states must recognize civil unions and grant most of the benefits of marriage to
registered same-sex couples.
c. the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy was unconstitutional.
d. states may not pass domestic partnership laws that grant most of the benefits of marriage
to registered same-sex couples.
e. sodomy laws violate the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process clause.
ANS: E
REF: 116
62. __________ is best defined as a policy that gives special consideration, in jobs and college admissions,
to members of groups that have been discriminated against in the past.
a. A quota system
b. Reverse discrimination
c. Feminism
d. Affirmative action
e. “Race-blind”
ANS: D
REF: 118
63. Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978) was a case involving a(n) __________who
claimed to have been a victim of reverse discrimination when denied admission to the University of
California’s medical school at Davis.
a. African American male
b. Asian American female
c. Native American male
d. white male
e. Latina
ANS: D
REF: 118 | 119
64. In Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña (1995), the Supreme Court held that any federal, state, or local
affirmative action program that uses racial classifications as the basis for making decisions is subject
to __________ by the courts.
a. strict scrutiny
b. ordinary scrutiny
c. intermediate scrutiny
d. exacting scrutiny
e. middle-level scrutiny
ANS: A
REF: 119
65. In Gratz v. Bollinger (2003), the Supreme Court held that the undergraduate admissions policy at the
University of Michigan violated the equal protection clause because it
a. automatically awarded every “underrepresented” minority applicant one-fifth of the points
needed to guarantee admission.
b. failed to take into account an applicant’s race or ethnicity.
c. automatically awarded every Michigan resident one-fourth of the points needed to
guarantee admission.
d. failed to take into account an applicant’s gender.
e. discriminated against “underrepresented” minority applicants.
ANS: A
REF: 120
66. In Grutter v. Bollinger (2003), the Supreme Court held that the University of Michigan Law School’s
admissions policy was constitutional because
a. it gave a “diversity bonus” of only five points to “underrepresented minorities.”
b. it did not ask applicants to reveal their race or ethnicity and thus did not take these factors
into account.
c. it did not apply a mechanical formula giving “diversity bonuses” based on race or
ethnicity.
d. it automatically awarded five points to female applicants in an effort to remedy past
discriminatory practices.
e. the law school required a first-year class to have an equal number of men and women.
ANS: C
REF: 120
67. Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 (2007) concerned the policies
of two school districts that were trying to achieve a more diversified student body by giving preference
to minority students if space in the schools was limited and a choice among applicants had to be made.
The Supreme Court
a. ruled that the policies did not violate the equal protection clause.
b. ruled that the policies violated the due process clause.
c. ruled that the policies violated the equal protection clause.
d. overruled its 2003 decision in Grutter v. Bollinger, and held that race cannot be used as a
factor when determining admissions or enrollments in any public school or university.
e. ruled that the policies did not violate the due process clause.
ANS: C
REF: 120 | 121
68. Affirmative action programs
a. have been banned in every state.
b. that give preferential treatment to individuals or groups on the basis of race, sex, or
national origin in the operation of public employment are required by the Civil Rights Act
of 1964.
c. have been banned in some states.
d. were first developed under President George W. Bush.
e. were first developed under President Barack Obama.
ANS: C
REF: 121
ESSAY
1. What standards does the Supreme Court use when determining whether the equal protection clause of
the Fourteenth Amendment has been violated by laws that discriminate against a particular group or
class of individuals?
ANS:
Answers may vary.
2. Describe the civil rights movement and the changes it brought about.
ANS:
Answers may vary.
3. How has the political participation of African Americans changed since the civil rights movement?
What continuing challenges do African Americans face?
ANS:
Answers may vary.
4. Compare the experiences of African Americans and women in their struggle for equal treatment and
political power.
ANS:
Answers may vary.
5. In what ways do women continue to face discrimination in the workplace?
ANS:
Answers may vary.
6. Discuss the growing political power of Latinos in the United States. How might that power help
Latinos confront the challenges that they continue to face?
ANS:
Answers may vary.
7. Has the image of Asian Americans as a “model minority” created any problems for its members?
ANS:
Answers may vary.
8. Describe changes in governmental policy toward Native Americans over time.
ANS:
Answers may vary.
9. How has the legal and political landscape changed for gay men and lesbians over the last
four decades?
ANS:
Answers may vary.
10. What is the current state of affirmative action? What are the prospects for affirmative action programs
in the future?
ANS:
Answers may vary.