Constitutional Accountability Center Constitutional Accountability Center

Civil and Human Rights

Securing the Constitution’s guarantees of liberty and equality for all
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Civil Rights March on Washington, 1963 | National Archives and Records Administration

Summary

The Constitution–in particular, through amendments ratified in the wake of the Civil War and Reconstruction–provides broad guarantees of liberty and equality. CAC works to ensure that the civil and human rights protected by the Constitution are realized for all.

Civil and Human Rights in Brief

Plaintiffs in U.S. v. Windsor walking down the steps of the Supreme Court | Judith Schaeffer

Major victories have been achieved in recent years, such as the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges guaranteeing marriage equality for all Americans, and the Court’s ruling in Riley v. California that warrantless searches by police of the digital contents of an arrestee’s cell phone violates the Fourth Amendment. However, our civil and human rights are increasingly under attack — by the Trump administration and in the states — and CAC is working tirelessly to defend those rights.

Featured Case

Civil and Human Rights November 6, 2019

Gilmore v. Jones, et al.

On August 12, 2017, in response to the Charlottesville City Council’s decisions to remove a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee from a small city park and change that park’s name from “Lee Park” to “Emancipation Park,” hundreds of white supremacists and neo-Nazis gathered in Charlottesville, Virginia for what they labeled the “Unite the Right” rally. This rally was countered by Charlottesville residents and other concerned individuals. Brennan Gilmore, a Charlottesville resident who was among the peaceful counter-protesters, was filming the day’s events when a neo-Nazi sympathizer deliberately drove his car into the crowd, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and...

Case Timeline

Current
  • The Fourth Circuit denies the petitions to appeal
  • CAC and Georgetown Law file a response to the petitions to appeal
  • Defendants–Petitioners file petitions for permission to appeal

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