civil rights

[ siv-uhl rahyts ]

plural noun

, (often initial capital letters)

1. rights to personal liberty established by the 13th and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and certain Congressional acts, especially as applied to an individual or a minority group.
2. the rights to full legal, social, and economic equality extended to African Americans.

civil rights

plural noun

1. the personal rights of the individual citizen, in most countries upheld by law, as in the US
2. modifier of, relating to, or promoting equality in social, economic, and political rights

civil rights

1. A broad range of privileges and rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and subsequent amendments and laws that guarantee fundamental freedoms to all individuals. These freedoms include the rights of free expression and action ( civil liberties ); the right to enter into contracts , own property, and initiate lawsuits; the rights of due process and equal protection of the laws ; opportunities in education and work; the freedom to live, travel, and use public facilities wherever one chooses; and the right to participate in the democratic political system.

Notes

Efforts to redress the situation of inequality, such as the civil rights movement and the women's movement , have resulted in legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , in affirmative action , and in the creation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission .

Word History and Origins

Origin of civil rights¹

First recorded in 1715–25

Example Sentences

Rashad was there to celebrate the release of the Civil Rights drama Selma.

From The Daily Beast

But the real mystery and injustice came from Brooke being essentially written out of the history of the civil rights movement.

From The Daily Beast

As long ago as the early 1970s, he had gone on to support most civil rights-related legislation.

From The Daily Beast

Finally, we have a major film on civil rights in which African Americans are the heroes in their own story.

From The Daily Beast

But he also reminded the younger members of the crowd of the civil rights movement of the last century.

From The Daily Beast

The reading world is deluged with books relating to woman,—her education, her labor, and her civil rights.

From Project Gutenberg

You are, then, to base your demand for woman's civil rights upon her simple humanity,—the value of the soul itself.

From Project Gutenberg

There is, however, a surely growing sense of this, shown in the substantial advance of her civil rights.

From Project Gutenberg

I had that in mind when I spoke to the Governor and asked him to include in your pardon a restoration of civil rights.

From Project Gutenberg

He gives us a detailed account of his sufferings in prison, his loss of civil rights, &c., in the third part of his History.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• freedom
• freedom of religion
• freedom of speech
• human rights