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The Dred Scott decision ruled that people of African descent could not be American citizens, stating the federal government had no power to regulate slavery in territories. This decision was overturned by the 14th Amendment, ensuring citizenship rights regardless of race. It starkly highlighted the country's division over slavery, leading towards the Civil War.

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President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, as the nation approached its third year of bloody civil war. The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." At the time, this was purely for strategical purposes. It added moral force to the Union cause and strengthened the Union both militarily and politically.

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The 13th Amendment officially abolished slavery in the United States, marking a fundamental change in the Constitution. This amendment laid the groundwork for further civil rights progress, directly impacting the legal status of millions and leading to the 14th and 15th Amendments.

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The 14th Amendment granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States, including former slaves, and provided equal protection under the law. This crucial amendment directly overturned the Dred Scott decision and set the stage for future civil rights advancements.

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The 15th Amendment prohibited the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude. This amendment was a significant step forward in the fight for racial equality, although its enforcement faced severe challenges during the Jim Crow era.

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The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced racial segregation, "Jim Crow" being a pejorative term for an African American. Such laws remained in force until 1965. Later, the Supreme court unanimously ruled that “separate, but equal” was unconstitutional and that the segregation of public schools, and other public spaces, violated the Thirteenth and Fourteenth amendments.

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Plessy v. Ferguson established the 'separate but equal' doctrine, legalizing racial segregation. This decision was directly challenged and eventually overturned by Brown v. Board of Education, marking a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement.

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In Plessy vs Ferguson, rendered on May 18, 1896, the Supreme Court authorized Southern states to impose racial segregation by law, provided that the conditions offered to the various "racial" groups by such segregation were equal, a doctrine known as "separate but equal”. This de jure segregation continued until the 1960s. De jure segregation is the potentially discriminatory separation of groups of people according to government-enacted laws. Laws requiring blacks and whites to attend separate schools is an example of de jure segregation. A connection to other parts of the Civil Rights movement is the the Jim Crow laws that followed the Reconstruction period in the South are clear examples of de jure segregation, because the segregation and disenfranchisement of persons of color was codified into law.

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The 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote, expanding democratic ideals and pushing the United States closer towards full equality. It connected with the broader civil rights movement by advocating for equal rights regardless of gender, inspiring later movements for equality.

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Brown v. Board of Education declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional, eliminating the 'separate but equal' doctrine established by Plessy v. Ferguson. This landmark case played a crucial role in the movement for desegregation and equal rights.

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The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a political and social protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama. Rosa Parks' arrest on December 1, 1955 launched the Montgomery Bus Boycott by 17,000 black citizens. A Supreme Court ruling and declining revenues forced the city to desegregate its buses thirteen months later. It led to a 1956 U.S. Supreme Court decision declaring that Montgomery's segregation laws on buses were unconstitutional.

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In 1957, Little Rock's Central High School became a crucial battleground in the struggle for civil rights. The nation sat transfixed as nine African-American students entered the previously all-white school under federal troop escort. This was a defining moment in Civil Rights, especially for African Americans.

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The Equal Pay Act was passed to prohibit discrimination on account of sex in the payment of wages by employers engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce. It protected against wage discrimination based on sex. Since the Equal Pay Act was signed 60 years ago, women have made strides in educational attainment, employment, and pay.

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The Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. It significantly changed the Constitution by promoting equal protection under the law, directly impacting future legislation such as the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and Affirmative Action policies.

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De facto segregation is the separation of people that occurs “by fact,” rather than by legally imposed requirements. In Balsbaugh v. Rowland (1972), the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that the Commission had the authority to use computers and busing to assign students in a manner that reduced racial segregation and that the elimination of “neighborhood schools” using public monies was not an equal protection violation.

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The Voting Rights Act of 1965 aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote under the 15th Amendment. This act strengthened the enforcement of voting rights, leading to significant increases in African American voter registration.

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In 1965, President Johnson issued Executive Order 11246 requiring federal contractors to take affirmative action to ensure equality of employment opportunity without regard to race, religion and national origin. In 1968, gender was added to the protected categories. This important order impacted every demographic, and played a part in Civil Rights for all.

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In 1970, "Jane Roe" filed a lawsuit against Henry Wade, the district attorney of Dallas County, Texas, where she resided, challenging a Texas law making abortion illegal except by a doctor’s orders to save a woman’s life. In her lawsuit, Roe alleged that the state laws were unconstitutionally vague and abridged her right of personal privacy, protected by the First, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth, and Fourteenth Amendments.

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Regents of the University of California v. Bakke is a 1978 Supreme Court case which held that a university's admissions criteria which used race as a definite and exclusive basis for an admission decision violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

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Signed into law in 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) protects persons with disabilities from discrimination in many aspects of life, including employment, education, and access to public accommodations. The Act made discrimination based on disability illegal in employment, and other aspects of life such as public transportation, public programs, telecommunications, and public accommodations such as restaurants, hotels, shopping centers and offices.

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The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 is a United States labor law requiring covered employers to provide employees with job-protected, unpaid leave for qualified medical and family reasons. It entitles employees of covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons with continuation of group health insurance coverage under the same terms and conditions as if the employee had not taken leave. This changed society by allowing women to take maternity leaves without significant consequences, increasing equality in the workplace.