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.
The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, imposes a restraint on the governmental use of suspect classification. There are four generally agreed-upon suspect classifications: race, religion, national origin, and alienage. However, this is not an exhaustive list.
Equal Protection Analysis
After proving this, the court will typically scrutinize the governmental action in one of several three ways to determine whether the governmental body's action is permissible: these three methods are referred to as strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, and rational basis scrutiny.
Let us start by examining the three levels of review applied in Equal Protection and Due Process cases: (1) Rational Basis Review; (2) Intermediate Scrutiny; (3) Strict Scrutiny.
In light of the history of the Equal Protection Clause, it is no surprise that race and national origin are suspect classifications. But the Court has also held that gender, immigration status, and wedlock status at birth qualify as suspect classifications.
Strict scrutiny is the highest standard of review that a court will use to evaluate the constitutionality of government action, the other two standards being intermediate scrutiny and the rational basis test .
The clause, which took effect in 1868, provides "nor shall any State ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." It mandates that individuals in similar situations be treated equally by the law.
Final answer:
The U.S. courts recognize a)race, b)gender, and c) national origin as classifications for heightened protection under the equal protection clause, requiring laws that differentiate on these grounds to serve a compelling government interest.
A classification made expressly upon the basis of race triggers strict scrutiny and ordinarily results in its invalidation; similarly, a classification that facially makes a distinction on the basis of sex, or alienage, or illegitimacy triggers the level of scrutiny appropriate to it.
Title III, which this rule addresses, prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in the activities of places of public accommodation (businesses that are generally open to the public and that fall into one of 12 categories listed in the ADA, such as restaurants, movie theaters, schools, day care facilities, ...
Suspect class
The Supreme Court recognizes race, national origin, and religion as suspect classes; it therefore analyzes any government action that discriminates against these classes under strict scrutiny.
No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.
A law, for example, that bans any type of headgear at work, may seem to apply equally to everyone, but it unconstitutionally affects the rights of persons who wear something on their head for religious reasons.
Equal protection principles limit only intentional race-based actions. Classifications that have an unintentional effect on a racial group (sometimes called a disparate impact) are not subject to strict scrutiny.
The three main categories of rights in the Bill of Rights include individual liberties, protections for those accused of crimes, and restrictions on governmental power.
In addition, the Fourteenth Amendment contains the equal protection clause. This mandates that no state shall… “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” This clause has proved to be central in ending and preventing government discrimination based on race and gender.
In short, Section 3 disqualification appears to apply to any covered person who has taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States and thereafter either (1) engages in insurrection or rebellion against the United States or (2) gives aid or comfort to the enemies of the United States, unless a ...
The content of the right to equality includes the following aspects: (i) the right to recognition of the equal worth and equal dignity of each human being; (ii) the right to equality before the law; (iii) the right to equal protection and benefit of the law; (iv) the right to be treated with the same respect and ...
Also known as the "Takings Clause," it states: "nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation." This provision does not prohibit the United States from acquiring property from private owners, but rather conditions such 'taking' on the payment of just compensation.
The Third Scrutiny – Fifth Sunday of Lent – The Raising of Lazarus. The Third Scrutiny emphasizes Jesus as “the Resurrection and the Life” as we hear the Gospel of the raising to life of Lazarus. Jesus in his obedience to his Father has the authority to give life to whom he will.
The three levels of scrutiny are strict scrutiny, intermediate or heightened scrutiny, and rational basis. Strict scrutiny is the most stringent review while rational basis is the least.
The Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in the wake of the Civil War, provides in part that “No state shall . . . deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” This simple phrase, known as the Equal Protection Clause, has spawned a complex body of judicial doctrine.