Assess which of the following amendments has had the greatest impact on increasing civil rights.

A. twenty-seventh
B.twelfth
C.Fourteenth
D.twenty-first

1 answer

The amendment that has had the greatest impact on increasing civil rights is the Fourteenth Amendment.

The Fourteenth Amendment was ratified in 1868 and had a significant impact on civil rights in the United States. It guarantees equal protection under the law to all citizens and prohibits states from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. This amendment was crucial in increasing civil rights for formerly enslaved African Americans following the Civil War, as it granted them citizenship and equal protection under the law.

The Fourteenth Amendment has been used as the legal foundation for many landmark civil rights cases in U.S. history. It has been instrumental in desegregating schools, challenging discriminatory laws, and protecting individual rights. It has also been used to extend civil rights protections to various marginalized groups, such as women, immigrants, and LGBTQ+ individuals.

While the other amendments listed (the twenty-seventh, twelfth, and twenty-first) are important in their own right, they do not have the same broad and far-reaching impact on civil rights as the Fourteenth Amendment. The twenty-seventh amendment, for example, primarily addresses issues of congressional pay raises. The twelfth amendment outlines the electoral process for selecting the President and Vice President. The twenty-first amendment repealed Prohibition.

Overall, the Fourteenth Amendment stands out as the amendment that has had the greatest impact on increasing civil rights in the United States.