AP U.S. Government and Politics Unit 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights Practice Exam

1. [Skill: 1.A | Topic: 3.1] The excerpt below is from the U.S. Constitution. > "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press..." Which of the following best explains how this excerpt illustrates the Constitution’s protection of individual liberties and rights?

2. [Skill: 2.A | Topic: 3.1] A student writes the following about the Bill of Rights: > “Because the Supreme Court decides what counts as protected speech or an ‘unreasonable’ search, the boundaries of civil liberties change over time even when the text of the amendments does not.” Which of the following constitutional principles is the student most directly describing?

3. [Skill: 1.B | Topic: 3.1] A review sheet lists several constitutional protections: 1. Protection against unreasonable searches and seizures 2. Protection against cruel and unusual punishment 3. Protection of the free exercise of religion 4. Guarantee of equal protection of the laws Which of the protections listed above is explicitly enumerated in the Bill of Rights as part of the first ten amendments?

4. [Skill: 3 (Source Analysis) | Topic: 3.10] Read the excerpt below. "An unjust law is a code that a numerical or power majority group compels a minority group to obey but does not make binding on itself. This is difference made legal." — Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" (1963) Which constitutional provision is most directly invoked by the argument in the excerpt to support a social movement’s challenge to discriminatory state laws?

5. [Skill: 1 (Concept Application) | Topic: 3.10] A coalition that includes the National Organization for Women (NOW) supports a lawsuit challenging a state policy that provides different employment benefits to men and women who perform the same job. The coalition argues that the policy is unconstitutional and also urges Congress to protect individuals from sex-based discrimination. Which of the following best explains how constitutional provisions and federal law can support and motivate this social movement?

6. [Skill: 4 (Argumentation) | Topic: 3.10] A statewide advocacy organization supports LGBTQ individuals in bringing a test case to challenge a state law that denies legal recognition to marriages between two people of the same sex. The plaintiffs argue that the law treats similarly situated couples differently and denies them basic legal protections. Which of the following is the most accurate explanation of how constitutional provisions can support and motivate this social movement’s strategy?

7. **1. [Skill: 2.A | Topic: 3.11]** A historian describes the federal government’s response to a mid-twentieth-century social movement with the following summary: > “The national government responded by using constitutional interpretation to declare that separate educational facilities for different races are inherently unequal, requiring states to end race-based school segregation.” Which of the following best identifies the government action described and the constitutional principle it relied on?

8. **2. [Skill: 1.B | Topic: 3.11]** A city newspaper reports the following: > “A privately owned restaurant open to the public refused to serve a customer because of the customer’s race. The customer filed a complaint under a federal law that prohibits discrimination in public places and helped spur integration of many public facilities.” Which federal government response is most directly referenced in the report?

9. **3. [Skill: 3.A | Topic: 3.11]** A state adopts a new election policy that results in significantly fewer minority voters being able to register in several counties. Civil rights organizations argue that the policy functions as racial discrimination in voting and urge the federal government to intervene. Which government response is most directly designed to address the situation described?

10. [Skill: 2B | Topic: 3.12] A state statute adopted in 1890 requires railroads to provide “equal but separate accommodations for the white and colored races” and authorizes penalties for passengers who sit in the “wrong” car. In a challenge to the law, the Supreme Court upholds the statute, reasoning that separation by race does not in itself constitute unlawful discrimination if the facilities are equal. Which of the following best describes how this decision reflects the Supreme Court’s role in balancing minority and majority rights?

11. [Skill: 4A | Topic: 3.12] Excerpt from a Supreme Court opinion (mid-20th century): “[W]here a state has undertaken to provide an opportunity for an education... such an opportunity, where the state has undertaken to provide it, is a right which must be made available to all on equal terms. ... Separation of children in public schools solely on the basis of race... generates a feeling of inferiority... that may affect their hearts and minds in a way unlikely ever to be undone.” Which of the following constitutional claims is most directly supported by the excerpt?

12. [Skill: 2B | Topic: 3.12] Excerpt from a Supreme Court opinion (late 20th century): “A reapportionment plan that is so extremely irregular on its face that it is unexplainable on grounds other than race demands the same close scrutiny that we give other state laws that classify citizens by race.” Which of the following best explains how the Court’s reasoning in the excerpt reflects the tension between majority rule and minority rights?

13. [Skill: 4.A | Topic: 3.13] Stimulus: In a Supreme Court opinion addressing an admissions program, the Court stated that “the attainment of a diverse student body… is a constitutionally permissible goal for an institution of higher education,” but cautioned that an admissions system may not “insulate the individual from comparison with all other candidates” solely because of race. Which of the following best describes the constitutional debate reflected in the excerpt about affirmative action policies?

14. [Skill: 1.B | Topic: 3.13] Stimulus: A state legislature passes a law requiring that 25 percent of all state-funded public-works contracts be awarded to businesses owned by members of specified racial and ethnic minority groups. A group of contractors sues, arguing that the law violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Which of the following standards and outcomes is most consistent with the Supreme Court’s debates over affirmative action under the Equal Protection Clause?

15. **1. [Skill: 2A | Topic: 3.2]** The excerpt below is from a Supreme Court opinion. > “To make an individual’s obligation to obey [a law] contingent upon the law’s coincidence with his religious beliefs… permits him, by virtue of his beliefs, ‘to become a law unto himself.’ … [The Free Exercise Clause] does not relieve an individual of the obligation to comply with a ‘valid and neutral law of general applicability.’” Which of the following best describes how the Supreme Court’s interpretation in the excerpt reflects the tension between government power and individual religious liberty?

16. **2. [Skill: 4A | Topic: 3.2]** The excerpt below is from a Supreme Court opinion addressing a state policy that reimbursed parents for transportation costs to both public and private (including religious) schools. > “The ‘establishment of religion’ clause … means at least this: … Neither a state nor the Federal Government can … pass laws which aid one religion, aid all religions, or prefer one religion over another. … [However], the State contributes no money to the schools. It does no more than provide a general program to help parents get their children, regardless of their religion, safely and expeditiously to and from accredited schools.” Which of the following best explains how the Court’s reasoning in the excerpt reflects a commitment to religious liberty while acknowledging limits on government power?

17. [Skill: 1 (Concept Application) | Topic: 3.3] A city adopts an ordinance requiring groups to obtain a permit before holding a demonstration in the downtown public park. The ordinance limits demonstrations to between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. and requires amplified sound to stay below a set decibel level. The city denies a permit to a group planning a noon rally that includes burning a United States flag, stating that the demonstration is “too offensive to the community.” Which of the following best describes how the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the First Amendment would most likely apply to the city’s denial of the permit?

18. [Skill: 1 (Concept Application) | Topic: 3.3] During a heated protest outside a government building, a speaker uses a megaphone and tells the crowd: “We should go inside right now and shut this place down by force!” Several people in the crowd begin moving toward the entrance, and police arrest the speaker under a state law that bans “speech that encourages illegal activity.” Which of the following legal standards most closely reflects the Supreme Court’s refined approach to when speech advocating lawbreaking may be restricted?

19. [Skill: 1A | Topic: 3.4] The excerpt below is from a Supreme Court opinion about whether the federal government can stop newspapers from publishing classified documents. “Any system of prior restraints of expression comes to this Court bearing a heavy presumption against its constitutional validity.” Which of the following best explains how the Supreme Court’s position in the excerpt reflects a commitment to individual liberty under the First Amendment?

20. [Skill: 2A | Topic: 3.4] A newspaper obtains leaked government documents describing a past intelligence program that the executive branch says is "sensitive." The Department of Justice asks a federal court for an injunction to stop the newspaper from publishing any articles based on the documents, arguing that publication could harm national security. Which of the following outcomes is most consistent with the Supreme Court’s “heavy presumption against prior restraint” standard?

21. [Skill: 3.A | Topic: 3.5] The excerpt below is from a Supreme Court majority opinion. > “The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home.” Which of the following best explains how this interpretation reflects a commitment to individual liberty?

22. [Skill: 4.A | Topic: 3.5] The excerpt below is from a Supreme Court opinion discussing the Second Amendment. > “In the absence of any evidence tending to show that possession or use of [a firearm] has some reasonable relationship to the preservation or efficiency of a well regulated militia, we cannot say that the Second Amendment guarantees the right to keep and bear such an instrument.” A state enacts a law banning civilian possession of a specific type of firearm and defends the law by arguing that the banned weapon is not reasonably related to militia purposes. Based on the reasoning in the excerpt, how would the Court’s interpretation most likely affect the level of protection for an individual’s right to possess that weapon?

23. [Skill: 4A | Topic: 3.6] The excerpt below is adapted from the Supreme Court’s reasoning in a case addressing the constitutionality of the death penalty. “[T]he concerns expressed in prior decisions that the penalty of death not be imposed in an arbitrary or capricious manner can be met by a carefully drafted statute that ensures the sentencing authority is given adequate information and guidance. ... [A] system of guided discretion, combined with appellate review, can minimize the risk of wholly arbitrary and capricious action.” Which of the following death-penalty policies best reflects the Court’s attempt to balance individual liberties with public order and safety, consistent with the excerpt?

24. [Skill: 1A | Topic: 3.6] A city police department asks a telecommunications company for several weeks of a suspect’s historical cell-site location records (data showing which cell towers the suspect’s phone connected to). The police request the records without a warrant, arguing that the records are held by a third party. Which of the following best explains the constitutional tension the Supreme Court has addressed in cases involving collection of digital data and public safety?

25. [Skill: 1A | Topic: 3.7] The excerpt below is from a Supreme Court opinion. > “Freedom of speech and of the press—which are protected by the First Amendment from abridgment by Congress—are among the fundamental personal rights and liberties protected by the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment from impairment by the States.” Which of the following best describes the implication of the doctrine referenced in the excerpt for the relationship between state governments and civil liberties?

26. [Skill: 2A | Topic: 3.7] A state legislature passes a law allowing state police to search a person’s home for evidence of illegal drugs without a warrant and to use any evidence found in criminal trials. A defendant challenges the law, arguing it violates the U.S. Constitution. Which Supreme Court reasoning best supports striking down the state law under the doctrine of selective incorporation?

27. [Skill: 1.A | Topic: 3.8] A state legislature passes a law allowing police to access a suspect’s cell phone contents (including messages and stored photos) without a warrant whenever officers assert the search is “necessary for efficient investigation of serious crimes.” In a prosecution for robbery, police searched the defendant’s phone without a warrant and introduced messages found on the phone as evidence at trial. Which of the following best explains the strongest constitutional basis for excluding the phone evidence in the state criminal trial?

28. [Skill: 1.A | Topic: 3.8] A news report describes the arrest of a suspect believed to have hidden a loaded firearm in a crowded public park minutes after witnesses heard gunshots nearby. Before reading Miranda warnings, officers ask the suspect, “Where is the gun right now?” The suspect responds with the firearm’s location. Prosecutors seek to introduce the suspect’s unwarned statement at trial. Which of the following best explains how a court is most likely to rule on the admissibility of the unwarned statement?

29. [Skill: 1A | Topic: 3.9] Stimulus: A state law prohibits the use of contraception by married couples. In challenging the law, plaintiffs cite the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause and argue that the Constitution protects certain individual liberties not explicitly listed in the Bill of Rights. They also claim that the Ninth Amendment supports their argument that people possess rights beyond those enumerated in the first eight amendments. Which of the following best explains how the Supreme Court’s reasoning in Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) could be used to evaluate the constitutionality of the state law?

30. [Skill: 2A | Topic: 3.9] Stimulus: Excerpt A (Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, 2022, majority reasoning summarized): “The Constitution does not confer a right to abortion. The authority to regulate abortion is returned to the people and their elected representatives.” Excerpt B (Roe v. Wade, 1973, reasoning summarized): “The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects a liberty interest that encompasses a woman’s decision whether or not to terminate a pregnancy, subject to certain limitations.” Which of the following best describes the central constitutional disagreement between the two excerpts?