E/CN.4/1995/78/Add.1 page 27 IV. MEASURES TAKEN BY THE GOVERNMENT AND ACTION BY SOCIETY AT LARGE A. Measures taken by the Government 92. The body of United States legislation designed to protect citizens or residents from racism and racial discrimination contains constitutional, legislative and regulatory provisions in the spheres of health, housing, education, access to public goods and services, the provision of goods and services by private individuals, and in various civil and political spheres. It also makes available various remedies. 64/ 93. The equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution precludes any state from denying its citizens the "equal protection of the law". This clause essentially operates to protect minorities by requiring that all people "similarly situated" receive equal treatment under the law. It also prohibits unjustifiable legal distinctions among different classes of people. The equal protection clause, however, does not govern the actions of the federal Government. Federal Government classifications that would otherwise violate the equal protection clause may be challenged under the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment. The Fifth Amendment precludes the federal Government from denying its citizens equal protection of the laws: "no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law". The standards for judicial review under the due process and equal protection clauses are identical. 94. Six major civil rights laws which have been established in the past 30 years are central to anti-discrimination law in the United States. They are often used in conjunction with constitutional or statutory protections. Table 3 Civil right Statute/date Responsible agency Public accommodations Title II, Civil Rights Act, 1964 Department of Justice Equal education Titles IV and VI, Civil Rights Act, 1964 Department of Justice, Education Employment Title VII, Civil Rights Act, 1964 Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Justice Department Voting rights Voting Rights Act 1965 Department of Justice Fair housing Title VIII, Housing Act 1968 Department of Housing and Urban Development Credit Equal Credit Opportunity Department of Justice