1971: Phillips v. Martin Marrieta Corp. In 1971, the Supreme Court ruled that employers could not refuse to hire women with young children while hiring men with such children. This is one of many rulings in the Supreme Court that has worked towards equal rights for women in the workplace by ensuring that women have the same opportunities men do to be successful in their career and not be discriminated against.
1973: Roe v. Wade The 1973 Supreme Court decision on Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion is one of the most well known in history. The Supreme Court ruled that a Texas law restricting abortion was unconstitutional. It said that a woman has a right to privacy and had a right to terminate her pregnancy if she wanted to. This ruling is important because it allowed women to make a choice. The topic of abortion continues to be very controversial and is still debated to this day.
1975: Taylor v. Louisiana In 1975, the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a Louisiana law that only allowed women to serve as jurors when they volunteered. The Louisiana law had greatly reduced the number of women serving on juries in relation to men. The ruling required states to call males and females to jury service on an equal basis. This is an important ruling because it brought more women onto juries, allowing defendants to have a jury pool that more closely resembles a jury of their peers.
1996: United States v. VirginiaIn 1996, the Supreme Court ruled that the Virginia Military Institute's male-only admissions policy was unconstitutional. VMI was the last male-only public institution before the ruling. The US sued VMI, claiming VMI’s admissions policy violated the Equal Protection Clause in the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. VMI tried to dismiss the case by starting a nearby liberal arts school for women called Mary Baldwin College, but Justice Ginsburg said that this program couldn't offer the same prestige as VMI and the school was forced to start admitting women.
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For more information concerning Supreme Court Cases that effected women in the United States, visit http://www.aclu.org/files/images/asset_upload_file420_24353.pdfweeblylink_new_window
or http://www.infoplease.com/spot/whmsupremecourt.htmlweeblylink_new_window |