United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Significance, The Court Reverses, Is It 1984 Yet?, Impact, Related Cases, Civil Rights Act Of 1964

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Further Readings

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Significance

Fifteen years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and seven years after the implementation of affirmative action programs by the federal government, United Steelworkers of America v. Weber was the first Supreme Court case to address the issue of affirmative action in employment. Thus by definition it set a precedent, and the Court's ruling--that affirmative action programs were not in violation of …

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - The Court Reverses

The case went before the Supreme Court along with two related cases, Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corp. v. Weber et al. and United States et al. v. Weber et al. These were attended by a flurry of amici curiae (friend of the court) briefs on both sides. Weighing in for the petitioners, the USWA, were groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the National Association for the Advancemen…

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Is It 1984 Yet?

Chief Justice Burger and Justice Rehnquist dissented. Burger, in his opinion, agreed with the Court's judgment--"were I a Member of Congress considering a proposed amendment of Title VII." However, given the fact that they were not making legislation, but were members of the judicial branch of government interpreting a law originating in the legislative branch, he believed that their interpretatio…

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Impact

The question addressed in Weber, Justice Brennan stated, was a narrow one. For more than a century, a large portion of civil rights cases had involved questions of the Fourteenth Amendment; but since in this case no state was involved, the amendment did not apply. Rather, Weber was one of a growing list of civil rights cases testing an act of Congress rather than a constitutional amendment. With U…

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Related Cases

United Steelworkers of America v. Weber - Civil Rights Act Of 1964

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the most comprehensive civil rights legislation in U.S. history. Proposed by President John F. Kennedy in 1963, the spirit of the act was to breakdown old patterns of racial segregation and social hierarchy. Title VII of the act, an extensive source of employment rights, forbids discrimination based on an employee's color, race, national origin, religion, or sex. Af…