Section 1983 In Historical Context

This article is primarily a review article. 

In the aftermath of the Civil War, Congress passed the Ku Klux Klan Act to protect recently freed slaves from the tyranny of white supremacist violence. The act was later codified as 42 U.S.C. § 1983, lying dormant as a vehicle for relief until it was resurrected in 1961 by the Supreme Court in Monroe v. Pape. 

Today, state officials across the nation act with impunity, harming groups of people less powerful, and less popular, than themselves under the cloak of state power. In the last few years, state legislatures have passed laws that target women and transgender people, to limit their bodily autonomy. Many of these laws violate the Constitution and allow plaintiffs to seek damages under § 1983. While the legislators who pass and introduce such laws enjoy absolute immunity, the state officials who enforce these laws do not. 

This article will discuss the current state of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 litigation and examine the ways that state actors violating the Constitution may be held liable for money damages. Part I will discuss the background of the Ku Klux Klan Act and how subsequent Supreme Court cases limited the aims of reconstruction. Part II will discuss how the Supreme Court’s decision in Monroe v. Pape paved the way for modern § 1983 litigation. Part III will examine the doctrine of qualified immunity and the doctrine’s limiting impact on § 1983 liability. Part IV will discuss damages and when damage awards are available. Part V will discuss the bundle of rights that fall under the umbrella of §1983 protection. Part VI will examine whom one can sue under § 1983, from Governors and State Attorneys General to lower-level officials. Part VII will be a case study of a Florida law and the corresponding § 1983 liability for the law’s enforcers. Part VIII will conclude by discussing the Florida law and the importance of using § 1983 as a vehicle for redressing constitutional injuries.

From Emily Kaufman, Acting with Impunity No More: Holding Rogue State Officials Liable for Money Damages Under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 on SSRN