Which case upheld the Civil Rights Act's prohibition on discrimination in places of public accommodation under the Commerce Clause?

Which case upheld the Civil Rights Act's prohibition on discrimination in places of public accommodation under the Commerce Clause?

• A. Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States
• B. Gideon v. Wainwright
• C. Wickard v. Filburn
• D. Morrison

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that Congress can regulate activities that have a substantial effect on interstate commerce, which allows the prohibition of racial discrimination in places that serve the public and rely on travelers from across state lines. In Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States, the Supreme Court upheld the Civil Rights Act’s ban on discrimination in public accommodations by ruling that hotels and similar facilities that serve interstate travelers fall within Congress’s commerce power. The motel in Atlanta refused to serve African Americans, and the Court held that such discrimination impeded interstate travel and commerce, giving Congress the authority to prohibit it under the Civil Rights Act. Gideon v. Wainwright concerns the right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment, not commerce power or public accommodations. Wickard v. Filburn dealt with regulating local production to affect interstate commerce, but the question here focuses on discrimination in public accommodations. Morrison involved limits on Congress’s commerce power in a separate context (gender-based violence) and did not address public accommodations under the Civil Rights Act.

The key idea is that Congress can regulate activities that have a substantial effect on interstate commerce, which allows the prohibition of racial discrimination in places that serve the public and rely on travelers from across state lines.

In Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States, the Supreme Court upheld the Civil Rights Act’s ban on discrimination in public accommodations by ruling that hotels and similar facilities that serve interstate travelers fall within Congress’s commerce power. The motel in Atlanta refused to serve African Americans, and the Court held that such discrimination impeded interstate travel and commerce, giving Congress the authority to prohibit it under the Civil Rights Act.

Gideon v. Wainwright concerns the right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment, not commerce power or public accommodations. Wickard v. Filburn dealt with regulating local production to affect interstate commerce, but the question here focuses on discrimination in public accommodations. Morrison involved limits on Congress’s commerce power in a separate context (gender-based violence) and did not address public accommodations under the Civil Rights Act.