Equal Protection Clause of
the Fourteenth Amendment
Unit 3, Lesson 19
“Equal Protection of the Law”
 Constitutional
guarantee of fair
treatment of all persons regardless
of sex, race, religion, or national
origin.
 Guarantees
Equality of Opportunity
but NOT Equality of Condition.
Separate But Equal?

Argument that racial
segregation is
constitutional as long
as facilities are equal.

Part of Jim Crow Era:
1870s – 1960s

Plessy v. Furguson
(1896) made it federal
policy.
Brown v. Board of Education
overturns Separate But Equal!

National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People (NAACP) had fought
lynching & segregation since 1909.

Sued the Board of Edu. In Topeka, KS
(1954) over the “severe & damaging
effects segregated schools had on African
American children.”

Supreme Court ruled that “Separate
facilities are inherently unequal”
How has the Supreme Court’s
interpretation of “equal protection”
changed since Brown?

The Court analyzes laws that classify
people into groups to see if that law
violates the equal protection clause.

Example: Must be 18 to vote = 2
classifications (those who can, those who
can’t). Does this law violate the equal
protection clause?
3 Levels of Law Analysis

1. Strict Scrutiny: Reserved for laws that
classify people based on race, national
origin, religion, or citizenship, & laws that
restrict voting, travel, or access to courts.

2. Intermediate Scrutiny: reserved for
laws that classify people based on gender

3. Rational Basis: All other laws that
create classifications (wealth, age,
disability).
Remaining Controversies

1. Is Affirmative Action permissible?
– Laws that give preferences to groups that
have been historically denied opportunities.

2. Should laws that classify gender have a
higher scrutiny?

3. Where do the handicapped,
homosexuals, or children of illegal aliens
fit in?