Preparing an Interview

How a Case Reaches the Supreme Court

Thirty-five years after the Supreme Court decided on the case of Brown v. Board of Education, an educational radio station is preparing a documentry series on the history of desegregation. As a reporter whose job it is to cover the Brown case you would like to interview Linda Brown, now 47, to recall the different stages of the case, her personal experiences in the years 1950-54 and the effects the Court's final decision has had on her life. Prepare the questions for the interview.

7 Minorities

part A Background Information

DISCRIMINATION

AGAINST

MINORITIES

THE BLACKS

Americans cherish the picture of their country as a land of wealth and oppor­tunity. Yet many groups wanting to share in the nation's overall prosperity have experienced how scarce opportunities can be in the competition for income and status. Discrimination because of color, culture, and age, for example, has kept many Americans from sharing equal protections and pros­pects in American society.

The 1960s was a decade of turbulence and social change. Blacks and other minorities became politically active, bringing their protests to the streets and courts all over the country. In response to minority demands, many new laws were passed to outlaw and compensate for inequalities. However, laws alone cannot eliminate discrimination. Attitudes change slowly. For example, despite the existence of laws that prohibit housing discrimination, many people still refuse to rent to blacks and Hispanics. Minority demands are sure to continue, and new solutions will be essential as the composition of American society continues to change rapidly. Hispanics and the elderly will account for an increasingly larger share of the population, and society will have to make adjustments to these changing demographics.

For America's blacks, the struggle for equal rights has been long and often bitterly opposed. When the Founding Fathers asserted in the Declaration of Independence that "all men are created equal" and possess inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, women and blacks were excluded. Not until after the Civil War ended in 1865 did blacks begin to share in the most basic rights of citizenship. Three Constitutional amendments were passed and ratified between 1865 and 1870. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery, the Fourteenth Amendment gave blacks the rights of citizenship, and

Founding Father: see page 25.

Declaration of Independence: see page 31.

Civil War: see page 44.

Constitution of the United States: see page 97.

Thirteenth Amendment: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

Fourteenth Amendment: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

MINORITIES 113

CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

CIVIL RIGHTS LEGISLATION

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

the Fifteenth Amendment gave them the right to vote.

Despite these Constitutional provisions, Southern whites found ways to circumvent the intention of the amendments. Racial prejudice was rationalized and institutionalized in the South. Until the modern civil rights movement, which began in the 1950s, blacks were denied access to public places such as restaurants, hotels, theaters, and schools. There were separate facilities marked "colored only" for blacks, and this practice of racial segregation was sanctioned by the courts. In 1896 the Supreme Court had ruled that racial segregation was legal as long as "separate but equal" facilities were provided. The landmark case Brown v. the Board of Education in 1954 was the first successful challenge to legalized segregation of blacks and whites. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that maintaining separate but equal schools for blacks and whites was unconstitutional because separate schools can never provide the same edu­cational opportunities.

With goals which included desegregation, fair housing, equal employment opportunities, and fair voting laws, the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s had the momentum of a social revolution. Until his assassination in 1968, Dr Martin Luther King, Jr, provided leadership and strategy for the mass movement. He supported nonviolent tactics such as "sit-ins" at restaurants which segregated the races. Some radical black leaders later advocated violent revolution as the way blacks could finally take control of the economic and political aspects of their lives.

The civil rights movement was a success in the areas of voting rights and public accommodations and facilities. In 1957 Congress passed the first civil rights legislation in eighty years. The legislation focused on protecting the voting rights of blacks, but additional legislation was found to be necessary. In 1963, Congress passed a constitutional amendment prohibiting the use of a poll tax in federal elections. Civil rights legislation was again passed in 1964, making it illegal to administer voting laws in a discriminatory manner. This act was significant in other ways. It prohibited discrimination in public accommodations such as restaurants and hotels and also outlawed job dis­crimination by employers and unions. The 1965 Voting Rights Act abolished literacy tests, which had been used to deny blacks the right to vote. In accordance with this legislation, federal examiners are still appointed in many communities to ensure that proper voter registration and election procedures are followed. As a result of these new laws, voter registration among blacks has increased, although the percentage is still well below the comparable figure for whites. Black political power has also grown: more and more blacks are being elected to public office.

In areas such as housing and employment, new legislation was passed in the 1960s to prohibit discrimination. Many of these laws were controversial and have been difficult to enforce. Despite fair housing laws, blacks and other

Fifteenth Amendment: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."

Supreme Court: see page 97.

Brown v. the Board of Education decision: Supreme Court decision of 1954 ruling that public schools could not be separated by race.

King, Martin Luther Jr.: (1929-68) American Baptist minister and civil rights leader, awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, assassinated.

114 AMERICA IN CLOSE-UP

PROBLEMS OF URBAN BLACKS

HISPANICS

THE NATIVE AMERICANS

minorities are often refused leases and contracts. In the area of employment, one way the government has tried to correct job discrimination is through affirmative action laws that require most employers to take positive steps to remedy the effect of past discrimination against minorities. The goal of affirm­ative action is to match the racial and sexual composition of the working place with the composition of society. Employers are encouraged to hire and promote blacks, women, and others who had been denied opportunities. Supporters of the policy insist that some form of preferential treatment must be used to break down the long-standing patterns of discrimination against minorities and women in the job market. Critics charge that it results in reverse discrimi­nation against qualified white males.

The inequality gap between blacks and whites has been closing, but 1985 Census Bureau statistics show that wide disparities remain in income and employment. The poverty rate for blacks is alarmingly high —31 percent com­pared with 11 percent for whites. The unemployment rate for black teens is more than 40 percent. Related to the problem of poverty is the breakdown of the urban black family. According to Census Bureau statistics, two-thirds of all black children are born to unmarried mothers. Violence is another part of the poverty cycle. A 1980 Public Health Reports study reveals that the leading cause of death among young black men is murder. While black men make up only 6 percent of the population, they account for half of the male prison population. The poverty and unemployment among America's urban blacks are reminders that inequalities have not been eliminated.

While black Americans, numbering about 28 million, make up the largest ethnic minority, the estimated 14 to 20 million Hispanics represent not only the second largest but also the fastest growing ethnic minority in the nation. Among the legal Hispanic residents, 60 percent are of Mexican origin, and most of the rest are from Cuba or Puerto Rico. Mexican Americans now make up one-fifth of California's population and the same proportion of the popu­lation of Texas. In 25 major cities, Hispanics number more than 50,000. The increase of Hispanic immigration has had a dramatic impact on American society, particularly in the South and Southwest where the greatest settlement has occurred. Spanish has become a major language in many areas, and some cities are officially bilingual. Because many Hispanics hold onto their language and customs, questions are raised about how successfully they will assimilate into American culture. The cultural infusion is resented by some Americans who fear that the country's ethnic identity is at stake. Many people wish to restrict immigration quotas in order to preserve the cultural dominance of non-Hispanic whites, but the stream of illegal immigration across the Mexican border continues.

Hispanics have faced a tradition of job discrimination and poverty in the United States. In the 1960s, Hispanic groups, inspired by the black civil rights movement, organized themselves to improve wages and working conditions, to institute bilingual education in schools, and to improve public services in Hispanic neighborhoods. Changes have occurred, but much remains to be done. The issues are of increasing importance as the Hispanic population may soon become the nation's largest ethnic minority if present birth rates continue.

Toward the end of the 1960s, Native Americans also adopted the techniques of protest. Besides the problems of discrimination which they have shared with other minorities, the Native Americans were embittered by the United States government's long history of confusing policies. After the Native

MINORITIES 115

THE ELDERLY

THE DISABLED

HOMOSEXUALS

Americans were subdued by the U.S. army, the government policy toward them wavered inconsistently between encouraging assimilation and promoting tribal autonomy. In the 1960s the federal government encouraged the retention of tribal governments and cultural identity. By this time the Native American population was becoming increasingly urban. City life weakened tribal cus­toms and bonds. Many urban Native Americans reacted against these conditions and began to take pride in their heritage, making Native American rights their prime political focus. The American Indian Movement (AIM) demanded reforms that would give political autonomy to Native American groups and recognize their special cultural needs. These efforts have brought a greater degree of sovereignty and increasingly favorable interpretation of Native American rights by the federal courts.

Besides ethnic minorities, other fringe groups have voiced demands for recognition and equal rights. The elderly, the handicapped, and homosexuals are minorities that suffer from discrimination. Between 1960 and 1982, the number of people over age 65 grew twice as fast as the rest of the population. With the number of older Americans on the rise, the demands of the elderly are becoming harder to ignore. Activists have addressed the issues of job discrimination, retirement, and health care, and have sought to dispel distorted perceptions of the elderly as weak, senile, and helpless. In 1967, the Age Discrimination Act was passed to prohibit discrimination against people between the ages of 40 and 65.

America's disabled are determined to cast off their image as second-class citizens. For years, disabled people were institutionalized or segregated and considered incapable of working and living as productive members of society. The courts and legislators responded to their demands by outlawing barriers to equal education and employment. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 required employers who receive federal aid or work on government contracts to hire qualified disabled persons. In addition, the act required that public schools admit disabled children and that colleges make their buildings acces­sible to the blind and those confined to wheelchairs.

Equal rights for homosexuals has been a more controversial issue. Although many states have passed laws banning discrimination against homosexuals, 24 states have laws prohibiting certain kinds of sexual activity. Conservatives, fearing thaft, tolerance of homosexuality undermines the nation's morality, applauded the 1986 Supreme Court decision that upheld the states' authority to make laws against homosexual acts.

The political setting for the civil rights movements of minorities was one of liberalism. During the 1960s and early 1970s, the Supreme Court frequently made decisions which favored minorities. Many of the Court's decisions were considered controversial because they disrupted traditional social patterns. The Court, liberal reformers, and student activists became targets of many middle-class Americans who resented what they regarded as the federal government's excessive protection of the "undeserving." This so-called "Silent Majority" of the middle class demonstrated its presence at the polls, voting against homosexual rights and many federal programs that benefited minorities.

Conservatives have been gaining influence in the 1980s. President Reagan was elected to two terms by a conservative majority. The various groups which make up the conservative movement are united in their desire to conserve traditional values and social patterns. Consequently, minorities are experiencing a less favorable political climate.

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