Supreme Court Activism

There is a frequent debate over just how activist the Supreme Court is in American society. The Supreme Court has shown consistent intervention and activism, regardless of the fact that there have been points in history in which the Supreme Court was less active than others, but it is more often than not that during major crisis or important times for government that the Court was activist.

During the Gilded Age, the 14th Amendment was being manipulated and used for different reasons for the first time, which allowed a lot of monopolies to form. Everyone from John D. Rockefeller who monopolized the oil industry with Standard Oils to Andrew Carnegie who monopolized the steel industry with the Carnegie Steel Company, used the 14th Amendment to their advantage. The Supreme Court determined in the Civil Rights Cases (1883), that the 14th Amendment does not apply to individuals who own a business or a private school, but rather only federally funded public institutions. Allowing any privately owned businesses to discriminate and support monopolies. This was backed by both the Slaughterhouse Cases (1873) and the case of Minor v. Happersett (1875). One of the biggest cases of the nineteenth century was Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), in which the Supreme Court established the idea of “separate but equal”. This led to many racial disputes and the validation of racial discrimination in public properties as well. This decision would create a lot of backlash and eventually gained enough built up protest to lead to the Black Civil Rights movement in the 1960’s.

The Cold war was yet another time in which the Supreme Court was highly activist. America was embracing it’s fear of the Soviet Union’s most powerful front, Communism. Fear of Communism in America led to the McCarthy Trials and general widespread fear throughout. Being labeled Communist meant being threatened, investigated, and often arrested. This is shown in the case of the Hollywood Ten. The Hollywood Ten, also known as the Hollywood Blacklist, consisted of ten famous Hollywood actors, directors, screenwriters, etc. that were labeled Communist or Communist sympathisers. American protestors released the ridiculousness of the matter and rejected the arrests of the Hollywood ten. However, in their testimonies the Hollywood Ten were evasive and manipulative in their answers. However, at the case of Yates v. United States (1957), the Supreme Court decided to protect free speech and the First Amendment, including Communist ideals, as long as they did not present any dangers. This was the beginning of the end for the McCarthyism Era.

The 2000 Supreme Court decision in the case of Bush v. Gore had the arguably most important profile and impact on American society than any decision before it. It was within this decision that the Supreme Court effectively elected George W. Bush to be the 43rd president of the US. The 2000 presidential election faced a big problem. The votes were very close, and have come down to the votes of Florida. It was thought that Bush was elected, but the votes came down very very close, so a recount begun However, when gone to recount the ballots, they were nearly impossible to read. Eventually, the Supreme Court decided to take on the case of Bush v. Gore. On the evening of November 7th, 2000, the Supreme Court ordered the recount to be stopped because the recount would be unfair to George W. Bush. That night George Bush was declared the official president elect.

The Supreme Court has proven itself to be an active branch of the federal government, instituting what is right, and wrong, shaping the future. The Supreme Court has the power to preserve as well as deny rights and liberties to all Americans. This active Supreme Court supports and molds the pathway of American history, leading to anything from free speech, to the Civil Rights Movements.