civil rights

American  

[siv-uhl rahyts] / ˈsɪv əl ˈraɪts /

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.

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civil rights British  

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

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civil rights Cultural  

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.

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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.

Etymology

Origin of civil rights

First recorded in 1715–25

Example Sentences

More than 120 US civil rights organizations, including the influential American Civil Liberties Union, issued a "travel advisory" in April warning of the "risk of serious rights violations" to fans, players, journalists and other visitors.

From Barron's • May 26, 2026

The Council on American-Islamic Relations received 8,683 civil rights complaints in 2025, the highest number of complaints in a single year since it began tracking such data in 1996.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026

Protesters crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma before continuing events in Montgomery, where speakers framed the current political moment as a continuation, not a conclusion of the civil rights movement.

From Salon • May 17, 2026

In 2017, Lindstrom received the Civil Liberties Award from the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon for his work advancing civil rights and liberties.

From Los Angeles Times • May 16, 2026

Again, it’s not that civil rights advocates don’t care; we do.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Related Words

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