( opposition to stereotypes )
See also:
Westlaw Overview of Civil Rights Handicap Rights Womens' Rights Public Policy Law and Legislation Voter Information Sites
Civil Rights and Discrimination: an overview -- includes local and global resources and links -- Cornell
- Agency listings, helpful articles, links
- Gender
- Indigenous Peoples
- Religion and Government
Civil Rights (Lawyers.com) -- layman's summaries of what makes a case. Attorney locator.
Civil Rights Law Resources -- U.(Texas)
Civil Rights/Human Rights (USC) -- Agency / info links.
Civil Rights (West Legal Encyclopedia)
Civil Rights (Law Journal Extra)
Electronic privacy information center. -- includes online free speech issues ( privacy v. govt. intrusion )
Rights and Freedoms (Catalaw) - U.S. and international links
Legally, civil rights are simply rights granted under civil law. In the U.S. civil rights are based on the constitutional guarantee of "equal protection under the law" for all citizens -- as opposed to laws specific to women, or atheists, or poor, or members of group X.
As such, most of the same civil rights laws apply to all minority groups. ( There are a few civil rights laws specific to the elderly, children, disabled etc., intended to improve equality in an imperfect world ).
To prevent some groups from being 'more equal than others', the courts in recent years have limited affirmative action to cases where there's evidence of past discrimination not yet corrected -- where a need remains to reinstate group X.
The fine-tuning of civil rights has led to a large body of law. The application of civil rights consists largely of understanding what is and is not a right under law.
Every form of human organization defines rights and prerogatives of its members -- the right to vote, the right to some sort of due process, the right to participate in some cases. These rights may be tacit or explicit.
In any surviving democracy, a balance is struck between majority rule and minority rights. A two thirds majority cannot for example simply exterminate the minority, except in a few countries. Freedom from such excesses derives from constitutionally limited government, wherein rights of the states AND rights of individuals are agreed upon and codified, as a basis for stability. The right to do business, the right to speak freely about a product, all ultimately derive from root principles of civil rights and civil liberties, both individual and collective.
The principles of governance cam be sound or unsound, based on facts an reason, or based on stereotypes and unreason.
All civil rights movements have had one thing in common -- no group ever got civil rights just by asking for them. Differences of opinion about civil rights are ultimately resolved by the adversarial legal system -- or by simple acceptance of individual differences. All human beings have the same desire for a chance to participate and succeed. Success in life also hinges on equality of opportunity in early education.