Final answer:
The Supreme Court has increasingly invalidated gender-based laws, enhancing protections against discrimination with significant rulings in favor of LGBTQ rights and women's rights. These include applying the intermediate scrutiny standard and broadening the definition of 'sex' in the Civil Rights Act.
Step-by-step explanation:
Since the 1970s, the Supreme Court has been pivotal in striking down gender-based laws and advancing protections against discrimination. A landmark judgment is the application of intermediate scrutiny in cases of sex discrimination, a standard first employed in Craig v. Boren (1976). This legal doctrine necessitates that the government justify the necessity of gender-differentiated laws with an important governmental objective.
In recent years, major strides have been made for the LGBTQ community. The Supreme Court's 2020 ruling expanded the definition of "sex" within the Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity, thereby protecting LGBTQ employees from discrimination. Ongoing battles in various states reflect the nuanced conflict between anti-discrimination policies and individual religious beliefs or prejudices.
Women's rights have also seen progress through legislation and court rulings, from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 up to the present where women occupy roles in every professional sphere and have achieved legal victories such as Roe v. Wade and access to military combat roles.