Equal Protection And Supreme Court Cases
Equal Protection And Supreme Court Cases
Brown v. Board of Education (1954) stands as a turning point in Supreme Court decision making as it erased segregation in schools and set a new standard for civil rights cases. Using stricter notions of scrutiny the Court was able to revitalize the Fourteenth Amendment. However, while this case set new standards in civil rights, the Court has since had a difficult time defining their role in cases regarding racial discrimination. Washington v. Davis (1976) and McCleskey v. Kemp (1987) are two such cases dealing with racial discrimination in which the court has had to deal with conflicting interests of the justices and how they perceive their role in the changing social landscape of the United States since the decision in Brown v. Board. This paper will examine such conflicting interests by examining the majority, concurring, and dissenting opinions of the justices in the aforementioned cases. Additionally this paper will critique the decisions in light of the following: the choice of political institution and rights principles; the use of precedents; their effect of the development of constitutional principles in its doctrinal area; the policy implications of the decisions; the effects of the case on the development of a principled constitutional law; the use of societal facts; and scholars' views on aspects of the cases.
The outcome of Brown v. Board gave the Court an increased role in shaping American society in regards to civil rights issues. Nevertheless the Court continues to struggle with cases dealing with racial equality and the Fourteenth Amendment. As cases have become more complex in terms of racial discrimination the Court has had to adopt guidelines to help ensure consistent and competent judgments in determining their constitutionality. These guidelines, under the guise of strict scrutiny, have continually narrowed the interpretation of the outcomes of Brown and have limited the parameters of the Equal Protection Clause thereby causing continued debate within the Court and in society about racial discrimination.
While many changes in the law that have been reflected by rulings of the Court have been beneficial for society they have not always mirrored public beliefs. By doing so the Court has had the power to direct how people act and behave regardless to their personal beliefs. The ruling in Brown was met with much opposition in Southern states, yet forced society to...