How the Supreme Court Has Shaped Civil Rights – And Why It Still Matters

The Evolution of the Civil Rights Movement

How the Supreme Court Has Shaped Civil Rights – And Why It Still Matters

Let’s be real: building a just society is long overdue. But if there’s one constant thread in America’s fight for civil rights, it’s this -- people have always pushed for better. And often, those pushes end up at one place: the Supreme Court.

Yeah, that big marble building in D.C. where nine justices in robes decide what justice actually means. Turns out, those decisions have done more than just set legal precedent, they’ve literally shifted how we live, love, vote, work, and exist in the United States.

The Not-So-Great Beginnings

After the Civil War, the U.S. tried to course-correct centuries of injustice. We got the 13th Amendment (bye, slavery), the 14th (equal protection under the law), and the 15th (Black men could vote — women, not yet). On paper, huge wins.

But in practice? The Supreme Court often didn’t deliver. Instead of enforcing equality, it kinda looked the other way — or worse, reinforced the status quo.

Cue: Plessy v. Ferguson (1896).

The Court actually said that “separate but equal” segregation was totally fine. Schools, trains, bathrooms — separate everything — as long as it was equal (which it never was). That decision gave legal cover to Jim Crow laws and kept communities divided for decades.

Finally, A Turn: Brown v. Board (1954)

Fast forward to the 1950s. Civil rights movements were gaining traction. And then came Brown v. Board of Education — the Court admitted it got Plessy wrong. They ruled that “separate” schools for Black and white students were inherently unequal.

That wasn’t just a win in court — it was a shift in how the country saw race, fairness, and justice. It gave momentum to the larger civil rights movement and, by the late ’60s, millions of Black students were in integrated schools.

Love Wins — Literally

Then there’s Loving v. Virginia (1967) — the case that made it legal for interracial couples to marry. Mildred and Richard Loving were arrested for being married. Arrested. For marrying someone they loved.

The Supreme Court shut that down. They ruled that banning interracial marriage was unconstitutional. And you could see the culture shift: in 1970, less than 1% of marriages were interracial. Today? It’s about 1 in 6. That’s not just a legal win — it’s a societal transformation.

LGBTQ+ Rights: From Criminalized to Celebrated

If you’re queer or have queer friends, you probably know how recent a lot of LGBTQ+ legal protections really are.

• Lawrence v. Texas (2003) said states couldn’t criminalize consensual same-sex relationships anymore. (Yes, that was still a thing in the early 2000s.)

• Then came Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) — the landmark ruling that made same-sex marriage legal nationwide. A decade ago, most Americans were against it. Today, around 70% support it.

  
  

Laws didn’t just catch up with culture — they helped shape it.

Work Is Personal Too: Bostock v. Clayton County (2020)

Even more recently, the Court ruled in Bostock v. Clayton County that you can’t be fired just for being gay or transgender. Seems like a no-brainer, right? But it wasn’t guaranteed until 2020.

Now, over a million LGBTQ+ workers are protected because of that decision. That’s rent, food, health insurance — all safeguarded because of one case.

So… Where Are We Now?

Progress has definitely been made, but let’s not pretend everything’s perfect. Discrimination — especially at the intersection of race, gender, identity, and class — is still alive and well in laws, systems, and institutions.

The Supreme Court can be a force for progress, but it can also backslide. Its rulings reflect where we are as a society — and sometimes, where we’re afraid to go.

Why It Matters (Still)

We often think of civil rights as history, but it's ongoing. Every fight, every vote, every case is part of a bigger story we're still writing. And whether it’s who you love, how you vote, or where you work — the Supreme Court is still one of the biggest levers we have.

So no, change isn’t just handed down in big dramatic rulings, it comes from people pushing, organizing, showing up, and refusing to settle.

Because human equity isn't a moment. It’s a human right.