Key Learning: The rights of individuals and society are protected by the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court.

 Unit Essential Question: How does the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights safeguard and limit individual rights?

Concept: Safeguards of the U.S. Constitution

Vocabulary:

amendment: a written change to the constitution 

Bill of Rights: first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution 

warrant: a document issued by a judge authorizing an officer to make an arrest, seize property, or make a search.

probable cause: the reason for an arrest, based on the knowledge of a crime and the available evidence

grand jury: a jury of 12 to 23 people designated to determine if there is enough evidence to have a trial.

double jeopardy: trying a person in court for the same offense for which they have already been tried or punished.

Concept: Impact of Constitutional Rights

Vocabulary:

civil disobedience: the refusal to obey certain laws or to pay taxes and fines, as a peaceful form of political protest. 

eminent domain: the right of a government to take private property for public use, with fair payment. This can involve the need for building roads or schools and has also been allowed by the courts in cases that would benefit the community, but the land would be for private business use

forced internment: putting a person in prison or other kind of detention, generally in wartime. During World War II, the American government put Japanese-Americans in internment camps, fearing they might be loyal to Japan.

 assembly: meeting

property rights: Laws created by governments in regards to how individuals can control, benefit from and transfer property.

Concept: The Evolution of Voting Rights.

Vocabulary: 

minority: a group differing especially in race, religion, or ethnic background from a majority of a population 

civil rights: the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality.

discrimination: the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex. 

literacy test: an examination to determine whether a person meets the literacy requirements for voting, a test of one's ability to read and write. poll tax: A tax required as a qualification for voting. After the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution extended the vote to blacks in 1870, many southern states instituted poll taxes to prevent blacks from voting. 

prohibit: to forbid by law.

 segregation: the enforced separation of different racial groups in a country, community, or establishment. 

state’s rights: political powers reserved for the U.S. state governments rather than the federal government 

suffrage: right to vote

Legislation Passed :

Civil Rights Act of 1964: A federal law that authorized federal action against segregation in public accommodations, public facilities, and employment. 

Voting Rights Act of 1965: A law passed at the time of the civil rights movement. It eliminated various devices, such as literacy tests, that had traditionally been used to restrict voting by black people.

 Civil Rights Act of 1968: defines housing discrimination as the “refusal to sell or rent a dwelling to any person because of his race, color, religion, or national origin”.

 Equal Rights Amendment: a proposed amendment to the US Constitution stating that civil rights may not be denied on the basis of one's sex.