The fourteenth amendment

                The fourteenth amendment remains one of the most important of all our constitutional rights. Although the fourteenth amendment seeks to uphold due process, it is the equal protection clause that has shown itself to be of major importance in terms of civil liberties in the United States. Article 1 of the fourteenth amendment stipulates that no state can “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” The equal protection clause has on many occasions enhanced the rights of minority groups such as African-Americans and others traditionally disadvantaged within the political process (such as women and gay people). The fourteenth amendment has been used repeatedly to justify the expansion of civil liberties within the states; and might be comparable to say the first amendment in terms of its resonance towards individual freedom.

                The fourteenth amendment was ratified in 1865 and is very much a product of what scholars traditionally label the Civil War amendments. It has been said that the winning side writes history, and the Civil War is certainly no exception to this. The conventional interpretation offered in American schools is that unionist forces sought to end slavery. This is stretching the argument a little, because the Civil War was essentially about the extension of slavery rather than its existence. It also ignores the fact that Abraham Lincoln suspended habeas corpus. That said; the Civil War amendments did represent a significant moment in the advancement of civil rights throughout the country. Since then, the fourteenth amendment has been used repeatedly to strengthen civil liberties. This was particularly notable during the liberal activism of the Warren Court. For example, the right to abortion on demand derives from the right of privacy as implied by the fourteenth amendment.

                In terms of the civil rights movement, the focus within the contemporary era has expanded towards gay and lesbian people. The issue of gay marriage received a significant boost from the Supreme Court ruling in the case of US v. Windsor (2013). Edith Windsor married her long-term female partner in a ceremony held in Canada. The ACLU defended her case and the judges ruled that due process had been violated in this particular case. As a result of the judgment, gay marriage is now legal in the state where Edith Windsor resides (New York). The ruling in effect overturns proposition 8 held in California during 2008, when the voters endorsed a proposal that marriage should be defined as a union between a man and a woman.