Lesson 19: How Has the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment Changed the Constitution?

Terms

equality of condition  Equality in all aspects of life, such as wealth, standards of living, medical care, and working conditions.

equality of opportunity  A right guaranteed by both federal and many state laws against discrimination in employment, education, housing, or credit rights due to a person's race, color, sex and sometimes sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, or handicap.

intermediate scrutiny  In U.S. constitutional law, the middle level of scrutiny applied by courts deciding constitutional issues through judicial review.

rational basis  In U.S. constitutional law, the lowest level of scrutiny applied by courts deciding constitutional issues through judicial review.

separate but equal  The argument, upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) but later reversed, that racially segregated public facilities are constitutional if those facilities are of equal quality.

strict scrutiny  Under U.S. constitutional law, the second highest level of scrutiny used by courts reviewing federal law for constitutional legitimacy. "Super strict scrutiny" is the highest level.