Question

In 1964, when Congress prohibited racial discrimination in public places such as restaurants, it used ___________ as a basis for this ruling.

(A) The Commerce Clause
(B) The Fourteenth Amendment
(C) The Fifteenth Amendment
(D) The Twenty-fourth Amendment

Answer 1

The Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited racial discrimination in public places, was based on the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Congress used its authority to regulate interstate commerce to address civil rights issues in public accommodations.

Step-by-step explanation:

In 1964, when Congress passed the Civil Rights Act that prohibited racial discrimination in public places such as restaurants, the basis for this ruling was primarily the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. Although the Fourteenth Amendment plays a critical role in providing equal protection under the law and was influential in the civil rights movement, the authority to regulate interstate commerce provided the federal government with the power to enact broad anti-discrimination laws in public accommodations.

This was because businesses that served the public were often engaged in interstate commerce, which allowed Congress to legislate against discriminatory practices that could affect trade and commerce between states. The Commerce Clause thus provided a constitutional foundation for the federal government to address civil rights and ensure that discrimination would not be legally permissible in areas that were part of the broader national economy.