PSC 101 – Section Borrelli
Midterm Exam #2: Civil
Liberties, Civil Rights, and a little Federalism
1.) In TV and movies, couples are frequently going to
a.)
The incentives
provided by Federal grants to the states
b.)
The “full faith
and credit” clause of the Constitution
c.)
The trend toward
a more unitary form of government in the
d.)
The interstate
commerce clause of the Constitution
2.) Which of the following were NOT used in the early 20th
Century as a way to prevent African-Americans from voting?
a.)
the grandfather
clause
b.)
the white primary
c.)
the preclearance procedure
d.)
the poll tax
3.) Which of the following statements about school desegregation
is FALSE?
a.)
The Brown v. Board decision in 1954 was
carried out immediately
b.)
Because the law
was already on their side, civil rights groups could effectively use lawsuits
to achieve their goals
c.)
The Brown
decision led to an increase in the growth of all-white private schools
d.)
Before Brown v.
Board, some Southern states had invested money in upgrading schools for blacks
so that the facilities would be considered “separate but equal”
4.) In judging what material is “obscene,” in recent years
the Supreme Court:
a.)
Has tried to
achieve one single standard applicable across the entire country
b.)
Has been
generally unwilling to consider that erotic material might have serious
political, artistic, or literary value
c.)
Has shut down hundreds
of many adult movie theaters and video stores
d.)
Has acknowledged
that the public’s standards can change over time
5.) Although Title IX of the Higher Education Act was
first passed by Congress in the early 1970s, the big increase in women’s
athletics programs did not occur until the late 1980s and 1990s. Why is this?
a.)
Initially, Title
IX applied only to blacks; then the
Supreme Court declared that it applied to women
b.)
The president
initially vetoed Title IX; President
Reagan reluctantly signed it in the 1980s
c.)
Congress
clarified the meaning of Title IX in the 1980s, and in the early 1990s the
Supreme Court declared that violators of Title IX could be sued for monetary
damages
d.)
Most colleges and
universities allowed qualified women to compete in men’s sports until the
mid-1980s
6.) According to the Supreme Court’s “Lemon test” (from
the case of Lemon vs. Kurtzman, 1971), which of the
following is most likely to be considered a violation of the “establishment of
religion” clause?
a.)
government money
being used to pay the salaries of math teachers in religious schools
b.)
government money
being used to pay for math textbooks for religious schools
c.)
government money
being used for bus transportation of students in religious schools
d.)
government money
being used to pay for nonreligious library books in religious schools
7.) Which of the following religious practices has been
defended by the Supreme Court?
a.)
the use of
hallucinogenic drugs by some Native American religions
b.)
animal sacrifice
c.)
men marrying more
than one woman
d.)
temple
prostitutes for worshippers of Baal
8.) The principle that evidence that was not seized under
a legal search warrant cannot be used in a criminal trial is called:
a.)
The prior
restraint rule
b.)
the Miranda rule
c.)
the double
jeopardy rule
d.)
the exclusionary
rule
9.) In chronological order, which of the following came
LAST?
a.)
the Civil Rights
Act, outlawing discrimination in hiring and service by private business
b.)
the Voting Rights
Act, setting up special procedures in areas with a history of voting
discrimination
c.)
the civil rights protests in
d.)
the integration of the
10.) The Gideon vs. Wainwright case, in which Clarence
Gideon disputed his conviction for breaking and entering because he had not
been provided a free lawyer, determined that:
a.)
The Federal
Government, but not the State Governments, are obligated to provide free legal
assistance
b.)
The State
Government is only obligated to provide a free lawyer if the accused criminal
is facing the death penalty
c.)
The State
Government is obligated to provide a free lawyer for just about anyone who is
accused of a major crime
d.)
The State
Government is obligated to provide a free lawyer for any defendant who is so
mentally retarded or mentally ill that he or she cannot speak in their own
defense
11.) The Plessy vs.
a.) legally segregated public transportation
b.) legally segregated schools
c.) legally segregated restaurants
d.) legally segregated private clubs (like fraternities
and sororities)
12.) In the 2003 Supreme Court decision of Gratz vs. Bollinger, involving “affirmative action” in
undergraduate admission, the Supreme Court concluded:
a.)
that the
University of Michigan’s program of adding 20 points to a 100-point admission
formula for minority applicants was a constitutional method of remedying past
discrimination
b.)
Race could not
enter into the admission formula in any way for any reason
c.)
The
d.)
That Michigan’s
program of adding 20 points for race to a 100-point admission formula did not
serve the specific purpose of increasing “diversity” in the undergraduate
student body
13.) Which pair of cases does NOT reflect a dramatic “change of
heart” by the Supreme Court?
a.)
Sodomy and
homosexual behavior: Bowers vs. Hardwick (1986) and Lawrence vs. Texas (2003)
b.)
Legally enforced
segregation in government facilities: Plessy v.
c.)
States’ ability
to regulate pornography: Roth v. US (1957) and Miller v. California (1972)
d.)
Defendants’ right
to free legal defense in state criminal trials:
Betts v. Brady (1942) and Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
14.) “You have the right to remain silent.” This announcement, which is made to
(hopefully) everyone who is taken into police custody, is a reminder of:
a.)
The First
Amendment (free speech)
b.)
The Fifth
Amendment (no self-incrimination)
c.)
The Eighth
Amendment (no cruel or unusual punishment)
d.)
Habeas Corpus (no
imprisonment without charge)
15.)
The promise made by President
Bill Clinton during the 1992 campaign to end discrimination against gays in the
military resulted in the compromise known as
A. "Peer Dynamics."
B. "Frontline Equality."
C. "Don't ask, don't tell."
D. "Uniforms
in the closet."
16.)
The 1833 case Barron v. Baltimore, involving a man who wanted compensation for the state government’s
dumping of gravel in his harbor, confirmed the idea of:
A. free speech.
B. dual citizenship.
C. the right of privacy.
D. expansion
of the Second Amendment to the states.
17.)
Soon after the Civil War, Congress passed the Thirteenth, Fourteenth,
and Fifteenth Amendments primarily to
A. protect states' rights.
B. guarantee the civil rights for the newly freed black slaves.
C. establish the right for women to participate fully in the
political process.
D. manage the economy through the income tax and Federal
Reserve system.
18.) Which is NOT
one of the conclusions of Akhil Reed Amar in his article (in the “Choices” reader) about the
Second (gun rights) Amendment?
a.)
The Founders,
many of whom depending on hunting for their food, clearly intended the Second
Amendment to protect guns for hunting purposes
b.)
Both anti-gun
liberals and pro-gun conservatives have wrong ideas about the purposes and
history of the Second Amendment
c.)
When the Second
Amendment refers to state militias, it was referring to something different
from today’s National Guard
d.)
Back when the
Second Amendment was written, the state militia was somewhat like a jury; any able-bodied male citizen might conceivably be called to
serve in the milita
19.)
The concept of “clear and present danger” is most clearly related to:
a.)
the 8th
Amendment (cruel and unusual punishment)
b.)
the 4th
Amendment (search and seizure)
c.)
the 3rd
Amendment (quartering troops in citizens’ homes)
d.)
the 1st
Amendment (freedom of speech)
20.) The phrase “wall of separation between church and
government”:
a.)
Is no longer
taken seriously by the Supreme Court
b.)
Does not actually
appear anywhere in the Constitution
c.)
Gave Roy Moore
the right to display the Ten Commandments in the
d.)
Would still allow
the Federal Government to adopt a national religion, as long as no one was
forced to belong to it
21.) Which of the following IS a VALID EXCEPTION to the
principle of “double jeopardy”?
a.)
You may be tried
twice for the same crime, as long as there are different judges and juries for
the two trials
b.)
You may be tried
twice for the same crime, as long as you are not convicted twice
c.)
You may be tried
twice, if you have committed both a federal crime and a state crime with a
single act (e.g., terrorism and murder with a single bombing)
d.)
You may be tried
a second time, if more than twenty years has passed by since your last trial
22.) The “incorporation”
of the Bill of Rights refers to:
a.)
Its applicability
to business companies as well as individuals
b.)
Its automatic
insertion into every new American government textbook
c.)
The fact that
none of the first ten amendments to the Constitution can be repealed
d.)
Its gradual application,
bit by bit, to state governments
23.) In our discussion of Federalism, what do we mean by
the “race to the bottom”?
a.)
The competition
among coastal states for natural resources on the ocean floor
b.)
The competition
among states to have the lowest taxes and least regulations so that businesses
will want to locate there
c.)
The revelation of
worse and worse political scandals in many of the states
d.)
The competition
among states to have the lowest population growth
24.) Which is the LEAST accurate statement about the “right
to privacy”?
a.)
It is not
mentioned specifically in the US Constitution
b.)
It is mentioned
specifically in some state Constitutions
c.)
Some Supreme
Court Justices have claimed that it can be deduced or inferred from rights that
ARE mentioned in the Constitution
d.)
It first appeared
in decisions about gay rights in 1986 and 2003
25.) The Roe v. Wade
decision by the Supreme Court:
a.)
Leaves the
abortion question completely up to state governments
b.)
Requires that
states allow abortions during the first trimester of pregnancy
c.)
Requires that all
50 states have the same (pro-choice) abortion laws
d.)
Requires that a
woman’s parents and spouse must be notified about an abortion
26.) The Reconstruction Period after the Civil War ended:
a.)
When every
Southern state had gotten rid of its segregation laws
b.)
When the remains
of the Confederate Army succeeded in chasing the Union troops out of the South
c.)
When the Southern
States refused to ratify the 13th, 14th, and 15th
Amendments
d.)
When the
Republicans agreed to withdraw Union troops from the South in exchange for the
Democrats’ allowing Republican Rutherford B. Hayes to become president
27.) An “unfunded mandate”:
a.)
Is a requirement
imposed by the Federal government on the states, that the Federal government
does not help pay for
b.)
Is a requirement
imposed by the state government on the citizens, that the Federal government
refuses to pay for
c.)
Is an order from
the President of the
d.)
Is an item
desired by the state governments, that the Federal government has no money to
pay for
28.) Which group’s lawyers played an important role in
bringing Brown vs. Board and previous
desegregation lawsuits to the Federal Courts?
a.)
the American
Civil Liberties
b.)
the Student
Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
c.)
the Southeastern
Conference (SEC)
d.)
the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
29.) Which of the following are NOT concerns raised by the
article by
Robert Levy
in the “Choices” reader concerning the USA PATRIOT Act?
a.)
New powers enabling
the president to go to war with suspected pro-terrorist countries without
Congressional approval
b.)
New powers given
the Justice Department to hold non-citizens without charge for extended periods
of time
c.)
Changing the
standards for electronic surveillance of individuals suspected of working for a
foreign power
d.)
Giving the
Secretary of the Treasury greater power to force foreign banks to disclose
their customers and transactions
30.) Which is the best summary of the Supreme Court’s
conclusions in the Bakke case and the Gratz vs. Bollinger (
a.)
Institutions with
a history of past discrimination are allowed to use strict quotas to ensure
that minorities are included, even if it means rejecting qualified non-minority
applicants
b.)
Because
affirmative action involves treating people differently because of their race,
it is unconstitutional, even if it attempts to help minorities
c.)
Institutions are
not allowed to take a person’s cultural background into account when deciding
whether to grant them admission
d.)
While race and/or
cultural background can be one of many factors in determining admissions to an
institution of higher education, strict quotas or formulas that are too heavily
based on race are unacceptable
31.) For a period in the 1970s, there were no executions of
convicted criminals in the
a.)
the Supreme Court
thought that the death penalty was excessively cruel
b.)
the United
Nations had imposed sanctions on the
c.)
the Supreme Court
thought that most state death penalty laws were not granting and carrying out
the death penalty in a fair and equitable manner
d.)
the Supreme Court
required that governors be present at all executions, and most governors
refused to attend
32.) If I am a public figure like a politician or a movie
star:
a.)
False things can
be said and written about me without any legal penalty whatsoever
b.)
It is harder to
prove that I have been slandered than it would be to prove that an ordinary
citizen has been slandered
c.)
I can easily get
a restraining order to prevent false things from being published about me
d.)
My rights to free
speech are restricted because of the greater responsibility I have as a public
figure
33.) Currently, in 2004, if I am accused of a major crime,
my right to an attorney:
a.)
Goes into effect
immediately after I am taken into police custody
b.)
Goes into effect
only when my trial actually begins
c.)
Goes into effect
only when I am put in prison
d.)
Is hardly ever
respected anymore
34.) Which of the following forms of religious practice is
MOST likely to be SUPPORTED (approved) by a Federal Court?
a.)
A voluntary,
optional prayer in a fifth grade class
b.)
A mandatory
prayer in a courtroom before a trial begins
c.)
A voluntary,
optional prayer at a college graduation ceremony
d.)
A voluntary,
optional prayer at the beginning of a high school football game
35.) Which of the following forms of religious display is
MOST likely to be supported (approved) by a Federal Court?
a.)
A cross on Good
Friday on a courthouse lawn
b.)
A Ten
Commandments display, standing alone, in a judicial building lobby
c.)
A Nativity Scene,
next to statues of Santa Claus and Frosty the Snowman, on a courthouse lawn
d.)
A Jewish Star of
David, Christian Cross, and Moslem Crescent together on a banner on the front
of the Tuscaloosa City Hall
36.) Which part of the Bill of Rights has NOT YET been made
binding on state governments as well as the Federal government?
a.)
First Amendment
freedom of speech
b.)
Fifth Amendment
freedom from self-incrimination
c.)
Seventh Amendment
right to a jury trial in civil cases
d.)
Fourth
Amendment’s outlawing of warrantless searches and
seizure
37.) According to class discussion, when did the Republican
party lose its long-time association (because of
a.
In 1957, shortly
after President Eisenhower used National Guard troops in
b.
During and after
the Presidential campaign of 1964, when Republican candidate Barry Goldwater
expressed opposition to the Civil Rights Act
c.
In 2000, when
Democrats accused supporters of Republican candidate George W. Bush of turning
away black voters at the polls
d.
This is a trick
question; every today (2004), most
voters still associate the Republican party with civil rights
38.) The right to privacy is:
a.)
Not actually
spelled out in the Constitution, but (according to several Supreme Court
Justices) implied by the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 9th
Amendments
b.)
Ruled
unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in the Griswold vs.
c.)
Not used to
defend the Supreme Court’s striking down of a
d.)
Something that
has been discussed in theory, but has never been used in an actual Supreme
Court decision
39.) The Founding Fathers were especially concerned about
the rights of the accused because:
a.)
They had been in,
or could imagine themselves in, the position of those accused of serious crimes
b.)
They knew that
citizens’ liberties were most endangered when they were in the custody of the
government
c.)
Both a and b
d.)
This is trick
question; no one was really concerned
about the rights of the accused until the 1990s
40.) Which of the following statements about the Bill of
Rights is FALSE?
a.)
The original
Constitution sent to the states for ratification in 1787 contained a complete
Bill of Rights
b.)
Some supporters
of individual liberties were concerned that in trying to set out a list of
rights, we might forget some important ones
c.)
Some supporters
of individual liberties were concerned that the Federal government would look
for loopholes in the Bill of Rights
d.)
Most of the Bill
of Rights is concerned with limiting or restricting government action, rather
than encouraging it
41.) The case of Barron vs.
a.)
the
self-incrimination clause
b.)
the double
jeopardy clause
c.)
the clause
providing “just compensation” for those whose property was taken by the government
d.)
the clause
stating that people accused of capital crimes had to be indicted by a Grand
Jury
42.) Which of the following statements about the Fourteenth
Amendment (one of the Civil War Amendments, but not the one ending slavery nor
the one giving blacks the right to vote), is FALSE?
a.)
The 14th
Amendment has been used to say that the Bill of Rights applies to state and
local govts., as well as the Federal government
b.)
The 14th Amendment guarantees that state governments
must provide each citizen “equal protection of the law”
c.)
The 14th
Amendment helps create the idea of a “national citizenship” that applies no
matter what state one lives in
d.)
The 14th
Amendment dealt with the huge government debt after the Civil War by
establishing a national income tax
43.) Plessy vs.
a.)
separate
facilities, as long as they were equal, were acceptable
b.)
separate
facilities did not have to be equal, as long as they were available
c.)
the government
should try to provide social equality, not just political equality
d.)
the 14th
Amendment had not been ratified properly and was therefore invalid
44.) Which of the following cause-and-effect statements is
FALSE?
a.)
The
b.)
The police
treatment of civil rights marchers in
c.)
Intense pressure
from the President and Congress led to the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education
d.)
The death of John
F. Kennedy helped contribute to the passage of the Civil Rights Act
45.) African-American Supreme Court Justice Clarence
Thomas, in response to the
a.)
affirmative
action quotas are necessary to ensure civil rights progress
b.)
African-American
students are helped by affirmative action, even though it is unpopular with
whites
c.)
The
d.)
“Affirmative
action” may actually hurt the people it is intended to help
46.) Which is the correct summary of the Supreme Court’s
2003 decision in the
a.)
both the
undergraduate and the law school affirmative action programs were
unconstitutional
b.)
both the
undergraduate and the law school affirmative action programs were
constitutional
c.)
the undergraduate
affirmative action program was constitutional, but the law school program was
not
d.)
the undergraduate
affirmative action program was unconstitutional, but the law school program was
constitutional
47.) Which sentence best captures the difference between
civil liberties and civil rights?
a.)
civil liberties
has to do with the government, while civil rights has to do with citizens
b.)
civil liberties
has to do with protection from government, civil rights has to do with
protection by government
c.)
civil liberties
are less advanced than civil rights
d.)
civil liberties
involve the military, while civil rights involve civilians
48.) Who would you rather vote for in next week’s
presidential election (all answers will be graded correct; I’m just taking a poll of the class)?
a.)
George W. Bush
b.)
John Kerry
c.)
Ralph Nader
d.)
Other, or none of
your business
49.) Most scholars agree that the Bill of Rights, at the
time they were ratified in the 1790s:
a.)
were meant to
apply mostly to the Federal government
b.)
were meant to
apply mostly to state and local governments
c.)
were not meant to
be taken seriously
d.)
were meant to
apply equally to both the Federal and state governments
50.) The Supreme
Court’s Dred Scott decision before the Civil War:
a.)
Declared slavery
unconstitutional in every state
b.)
Declared that the
Southern states had no legal right to secede
c.)
Declared that
Congress had no power to regulate slavery in the states
d.)
Declared that
freed slaves could sue their former owners for damages