Week Ten: Baker v. Carr (1962) | One Man, One Vote
This spring, as Michigan prepares to conduct its first reapportionment by non-partisan Citizens Redistricting Commission, is an especially appropriate time to consider the case of Baker v. Carr (1962) which was the first of three 1960s redistricting cases that established the principle of one person, one vote and launched the assault that continues to this day on the Gerrymander. The decision also established that state election laws were not solely local or political matters but were, in fact, justiciable in federal court.
To learn more about this case that has probably never been more important than it is today, follow the link below to a series of short videos from C-SPAN Classroom that discuss events leading up to the case, the parties, the arguments, the decision process (this was a very hard case for the Court), and finally the decision and its impact.
Our latest series focuses on the US Supreme Court and the role it has played in the struggle for civil rights. This new series has three parts. First, we look at two cases that established the principle of judicial review of actions by federal (1803) and state (1817) government. Second, we look at a series of Supreme Court cases decided between 1857 and 1944. These cases made it easier for governments to deny individuals their rights and so each made the moral arc of the universe a little longer. Finally, we look at a series of cases decided between 1886 and 1983 that moved America forward toward justice. For this new series, we draw on some very short (thirty seconds to four-minute videos) from C-SPAN Classroom.