Equal Protection
Main Content
Equal Protection
Annotation
The Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution guarantees citizens of the United States equal protection under the law. This amendment states a right that could be inferred from other parts of the Constitution, but extends these rights to all people, most importantly African Americans. The amendment requires states to also provide all persons equal protection under the law. Ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment was a condition of readmission to the Union for southern states after the Civil War.
Citations
Citations
Amendment 14
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.