Equal Protection Clause

Definition

Part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution providing that no state shall deny any person within its jurisdiction "the equal protection of the laws".

Related terms

Fourteenth Amendment: An amendment to the U.S. Constitution granting citizenship and equal civil and legal rights to African Americans and slaves who had been emancipated after the American Civil War.

Due Process Clause: A clause in the U.S. Constitution that guarantees fair treatment through normal judicial system, especially as a citizen's entitlement.

Jim Crow Laws: State and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States.