Skip to Main Content

The Longevity of the Fourteenth Amendment

CH
by Chris Huntemann on

<p>It was ratified in&nbsp;1868, but the meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment&nbsp;is still&nbsp;debated to this day.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The amendment grants citizenship and civil rights to all individuals born or naturalized in the United States.&nbsp;At the time of its ratification, it&nbsp;granted those rights to formerly enslaved people.&nbsp;The Fourteenth Amendment also includes the Equal Protection Clause, which grants individuals equal protection under the law, and the Due Process Clause, which guarantees&nbsp;that&nbsp;no one is deprived of&nbsp;life, liberty, or property without first receiving due process of&nbsp;law.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Fourteenth Amendment has been vigorously debated since its drafting in 1866 and ratification in 1868. It has been cited numerous times in front of the U.S. Supreme Court and in landmark cases decided by the Court, including Brown v. Board of Education (1954), Loving v. Virginia (1967), Roe v. Wade (1973), and Obergefell v. Hodges (2015). In this capacity, it has been central to the incorporation of the Bill of Rights into the States.  </p>

<p><strong>There Is&nbsp;A&nbsp;Playlist&nbsp;For&nbsp;That!</strong>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Bill of Rights Institute offers&nbsp;numerous&nbsp;resources to help you&nbsp;explore&nbsp;the Fourteenth Amendment and&nbsp;its legacy, including&nbsp;our&nbsp;<a href="https://billofrightsinstitute.org/playlists/fourteenth-amendment-playlist/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Fourteenth Amendment playlist</a>.&nbsp;It offers a plethora of materials around the topic, including, but not limited to,&nbsp;eLessons, activities, videos, essays,&nbsp;and primary sources.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You can explore&nbsp;various topics&nbsp;related to the Fourteenth Amendment in the playlist,&nbsp;including its relationship to the end of slavery and Reconstruction&nbsp;and&nbsp;the Progressive Era. The playlist also offers videos on the Fourteenth Amendment from BRI’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLBjemLhDhcNG8rK_LHKZVv_XqW2VPf7OM" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Homework Help series</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Visit&nbsp;<a href="https://billofrightsinstitute.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BRI’s website</a>&nbsp;to view more materials on the Fourteenth Amendment and all the amendments that make up the U.S.&nbsp;Constitution.&nbsp;</p>