Download Pol Sci 101 – La Shomb

VI. Civil Liberties + Civil Right Quiz
DIRECTIONS: Select the “BEST” answer for the following:
1. Civil liberties are
(A) laws that provide and set limits on one’s freedoms. (B) individual legal and constitutional protections
against the government. (C) the right to vote and participate in the political process in a democracy. (D)
freedoms that are not specified in the Constitution or in statutory laws, but make up the unwritten
constitution. (E) citizen’s rights to equal treatment under the law.
2. In the case of ____, the Supreme Court ruled that the Bill of Rights restrained only the national
government, not states and cities.
(A) Barron v. Baltimore (B) Gitlow v. New York (C) Miranda v. Arizona (D) Engel v. Vitale
(E) New York v. the United States
3. Beginning with the case of _____ in 1925, the Supreme Court began to rule that the Bill of Rights
applied directly to the states, as well as the national government.
(A) Barron v. Baltimore (B) Gitlow v. New York (C) Miranda v. Arizona (D) Engel v. Vitale
(E) New York v. the United States
4. In the Lemon v. Kurtsman decision of 1971, the Supreme Court ruled that
(A) devotional Bible-reading in public schools was unconstitutional. (B) any aid of any sort to churchrelated schools is not constitutional because it violates church-state separation.
(C) aid to church-related schools is fully constitutional and can be used for any purpose needed by the
schools. (D) spoken prayers in public schools were unconstitutional. (E) aid to church-related schools
must be for secular purposes only, and cannot be used to advance or inhibit religion.
5. The case of Near v. Minnesota (1931)
(A) upheld Minnesota’s right to close down a newspaper. (B) ruled that newspapers could not publish
secret information that threatens national security. (C) identified an exception to the Constitutional
guarantees barring government censorship of the press. (D) ruled that states cannot prohibit animal
sacrifice. (E) held that government had illegally issued prior restraint.
6. In the case of New York Times v. Sullivan (1964), the Supreme Court ruled that
(A) statements made about political figures are libelous only if made with malice and reckless disregard
for the truth. (B) statements made about political figures, however malicious, can never be deemed
libelous. (C) the publication of the Pentagon Papers could be legally barred as a matter of national
security. (D) the Pentagon Papers could be legally published despite the government’s desire to keep the
material secret. (E) government officials cannot sue newspapers for libel since this could mean an
attempt at prior restraint.
7. The principle that “obscenity is not within the area of constitutionality protected speech or press” was
established by
(A) Red Lion v. FCC. (B) U.S. v. Playboy Entertainment Group. (C) Betts v. Brady
(D) Roth v. United States. (E) Webster v. Reproductive Health Services.
8. The right to privacy was applied to the states by the Supreme Court case of
(A) Gitlow v. New York. (B) Near v. Minnesota. (C) Mapp v. Ohio (D) Griswold v. Connecticut.
(E) Betts v. Brady
9. Unless they witness a crime, police officers cannot arrest a suspect without
(A) due process. (B) a writ of habeas corpus. (C) a search warrant. (D) informing him/her of one’s
Miranda rights. (E) probable cause.
10. In the case of _____, the Supreme Court rules that the protection against unreasonable search and
seizure applied to the state and local governments, as well as the national government, thus nationalizing
the exclusionary rule.
(A) Miranda v. Arizona (B) Roth v. United States (C) Gideon v. Wainwright (D) Mapp v. Ohio
(E) United States v. New York
11. In what case did the Supreme Court rule that suspects must be told of their constitutional rights to
remain silent, that what they say can be used against them, and of their right to have an attorney present
during any questioning?
(A) Gideon v. Wainwright (B) Mapp v. Ohio (C) Miranda v. Arizona (D) Near v. Minnesota
(E) Texas v. Johnson
12. In the case of ____, the Supreme Court ruled that defendants in all felony cases had a right to counsel,
and if they could not afford to hire a lawyer, the state would provide one.
(A) Miranda v. Arizona (B) Gideon v. Wainwright (C) Mapp v. Ohio (D) Engel v. Vitale
(E) Reno v. ACLU
13. Most cases are settled through
(A) trial by jury. (B) judicial tribunals. (C) plea bargaining. (D) pauper’s petitions
(E) trial by a judge.
14. In the case of Gregg v. Georgia, the Supreme Court has ruled that capital punishment
(A) is not cruel and unusual punishment. (B) can only be imposed for crimes in which more than one
person has been killed. (C) could not be used in the future, although those already on death row could
still be executed. (D) is cruel and unusual punishment and it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment.
(E) is prohibited in federal courts but permissible in state courts.
15. The Supreme Court ruled in its Roe v. Wade decision that
(A) abortion was murder. (B) abortion was to be allowed only in cases of rape or incest of when the life
of the pregnant mother was in danger. (C) abortion could not be prohibited by any state during the first
trimester of the pregnancy. (D) all restrictions on abortions at any stage of a pregnancy were a violation
of a woman’s right to privacy. (E) each state, but not the federal government, has the authority to
determine whether to permit or prohibit abortion.
16. In Schneck v. United States (1919) Justice Holmes said that speech can be restricted when it
(A) advocates violent overthrow of the United States. (B) is expressed on private property.
(C) provokes a “clear and present danger) to the people (D) is spoken rather than non-verbal or symbolic.
(D) is uttered by government officials in an effort to establish a religion.
17. Civil rights
(A) consist of legal and constitutional protection against the government. (B) can be divided into the
great political freedoms and protections at the bar of justice. (C) are policies that extend basic principles
to groups historically subject to discrimination. (D) involve the principles that can only be relegated by
the criminal justice system. (E) is the other term that provides the proper description for civil liberties.
18. The concept of equality before the law was introduced to the Constitution in the
(A) 13th Amendment. (B) 14th Amendment. (C) 15th Amendment. (D) 16th Amendment.
(E) 19th Amendment.
19. In the case of _____, the Supreme Court ruled that a black man, slave or free, was “chattel” and had
no rights under a white man’s government; it also ruled that Congress had no power to ban slavery in the
western territories.
(A) Plessy v. Ferguson (B) Brown v. Board of Education. (C) Dred Scott v. Sanford. (D) Craig v. Boren
(E) Amos v. Colorado
20. Slavery was declared unconstitutional by the
(A) The _______ Amendment outlawed slavery in the United States.
(A) First (B) Seventh (C) Tenth (D) 13th (E) 19th
21. In the case of Plessy v. Ferguson,
(A) the principle of “separate but equal” was used to justify segregation. (B) the principle of “separate
but equal” was overturned. (C) school busing was allowed to remedy racial segregation. (D) housing
discrimination was forbidden. (E) US citizenship and all rights that go with it were granted to former
slaves.
22. The Civil Rights Act of _____, the most important law since the Emancipation Proclamation, made
racial discrimination illegal in public accommodations through out America.
(A) 1954 (B) 1974 (C) 1994 (D) 1984 (E) 1964
23. Poll taxes for federal elections were outlawed in the
(A) Civil Rights Act of 1964. (B) Voting Rights Act. (C) 24th Amendment. (D) Supreme Court Guinn
v. US decision of 1915. (E) Tax Reform Act of 1963.
24. The _____ gave women the constitutional right to vote.
(A) Bill of Rights (B) 15th Amendment (C) 19th Amendment (D) 24th Amendment
(E) Equal Rights Amendment
25. In the case of Reed v. Reed (1971), the Supreme Court
(A) declared that a woman’s place was in the home. (B) prohibited sexual discrimination in public
schools. (C) struck down a law setting different legal drinking ages by sex. D) declared that in divorces
women were entitled to half the community property. (E) held that any arbitrary sex-based classification
violated the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
26. All of the following statements about the Equal Rights Amendment are true EXCEPT
(A) the ERA was first introduced in the 1920s. (B) Congress passed the ERA in 1972.
(C) the ERA battle stimulated vigorous feminist activity. (D) the ERA was ratified in 1982.
(E) the ERA battle stimulated vigorous anti-feminist activity.
27. “Comparable worth” refers to the issue of
(A) equal voting rights and access to public office for women. (B) paying men and women equivalent
salaries for jobs requiring similar skills. (C) government subsidization of women who choose to work at
home. (D) reduced work responsibilities for women workers with children. (E) the inherent dignity and
equality of women with men.
28. All of the following statements about women in the military are true EXCEPT
(A) Efficiency studies have shown that women can perform on an equal level to men.
(B) Congress has opened all the service academies to women. (C) Women, as well as men, are now
required to register for the Selective Service. (D) Women have served in every branch of the armed
services since W.W.II. (E) Statutes and regulations prohibit women from serving in most combat
situations.
29. In 1993 the Supreme Court ruled that sexual harassment is sex discrimination that violates the Civil
Rights Act when
(A) the workplace environment becomes hostile or abusive. (B) it causes severe psychological injury.
(C) an employee can no longer perform his or her job. (D) the target suffers a nervous breakdown. (E)
the target objects a second time to touching, body language or profane talk.
30. In 1990, Congress enacted the _____, a far reaching law to protect a particular group of Americans
from discrimination, ignoring those who claimed the price tag would be too high.
(A) Native-Americans Inclusion Act (B) Gay Lesbian Civil Rights Bill (C) Children’s Rights Act (D)
Americans with Disabilities Act (E) Immigrant Grant Act
31. The strongest and most controversial form of affirmative action is
(A) comparable worth. (B) equal opportunity. (C) numerical quotas. (D) busing.
(E) minority/majority.
32. In the case of Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, the US Supreme Court
(A) outlawed all affirmative action programs as unconstitutional. (B) ruled that the University of
California-Davis medical school could not discriminate. (C) upheld all affirmative action programs as
justified and constitutional. (D) upheld affirmative action programs, but limited their scope and outlawed
racial quota set-asides. (E) ruled that state-run nursing schools could not discriminate against men in
admissions to their programs
33. In its 1995 ruling in Adarand Constructors v. Pena, the Supreme Court
(A) changed direction and began to curtail federal use of affirmative action programs. (B) upheld federal
affirmative actions programs as constitutional. (C) mandated an expansion of federal affirmative action
programs. (D) broadened the scope of state and local affirmative action programs that it considers
constitutional. (E) outlawed discrimination against women in the construction industry.
34. Which of the following court cases did the US Supreme Court uphold affirmative action programs but
questioned the admission policies of post-secondary institutions in promoting minority recruitment?
I. Adarand v. Pena
II. University of California Regents v. Bakke
III. Easley v. Cromartie
IV. Gratz v. Bollinger
V. Grutter v. Bollinger
(A) I only (B) II + IV + V (C) III + V (D) III + IV + V (E) IV + V
35. African-American voter turnout in Presidential campaigns rose sharply from 1960 – 2004 because:
(A) More black presidential candidates were running for office.
(B) Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka court ruling increased voter registration.
(C) Voting Rights Act of 1965 forbid discrimination in voting and registration.
(D) Civil Rights Act of 1964 forbid discrimination in voting and registration.
(E) Many third party candidates ran for office promoting African-American causes.
Key:
1B
25E
2A
14A
26D
3B
4E
15C 16C
27B
28C
5E
17C
29A
6a
18B
30D
7D
19C
31C
8D
20D
32D
9E
21A
33A
10D
22E
34B
11C
23C
35C
12B
24C
13C