Bias in the media influences perceptions of events, people, and political issues. Researching political parties and their stances on various policies can provide the context necessary to separate the biases of news sources from the news itself. The Democratic and Republican parties hold distinct positions on civil right policies, for example, which have shifted over time and persist in influencing media coverage of related issues.
Civil rights refer to the basic freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution to all citizens. The question of whether or not civil rights have been realized for all remains contentious in America. Civil rights issues are especially relevant in terms of race, gender, LGBTQ+ individuals, and disability.
Since America’s infancy, the topic of racial disparity has plagued political conversation. Race relations have certainly improved with time, but Democrats and Republicans disagree on whether race relations have reached an apex or if problems remain to be remedied, with Democrats generally perceiving race relations as bad at present and Republicans split on whether to characterize race relations as good or bad.
Laws to protect civil rights and prevent discrimination based on race, gender, religion, and disabilities have been passed. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 specifically prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, color, or national origin in public places, schools, and employment.
However, civil rights and discrimination are still up in the air for some, including LGBTQ+ individuals. There have been a number of attempts to introduce the Equality Act, which would explicitly prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, but the bill has never made it past the Senate.
In recent times, the stance on civil rights usually falls with Democrats being more interested in pushing for policies to protect civil rights with their greater focus on humanitarian causes and government involvement, while Republicans are more likely to oppose such policies since they prefer a limited government.
President Donald Trump, as a Republican, walked back a number of civil rights and related policies in 2025, aligning with his campaign promises. He took this action on the grounds that some of these policies, especially those related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), promote discriminatory decision-making rather than judgments based on merit.
The Democratic Stance on Civil Rights
The positive Democratic stance on civil rights often leads Democrats to advocate for civil rights policy issues. Part of the reason Democrats are so involved with civil rights policy is that they favor a strong government that intervenes to ensure equal opportunities.
They are associated with expanding civil rights for minorities, women, and LGBTQ+ individuals, and the party played a significant role in passing legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Democrats have also been the ones to push for the Equality Act to protect LGBTQ+ individuals. They support DEI initiatives and affirmative action as a means of ensuring opportunities for disadvantaged individuals and achieving social and economic equality.
The Republican Stance on Civil Rights
The modern Republican stances on civil rights are informed by the party’s emphasis on limited government and individual liberty. They value state and individual rights with a mindset that promotes accomplishment and merit over government intervention. This perspective means that they can sometimes see civil right policy as government overreach that interferes with a person’s fundamental freedoms, including freedom of speech, religion, and association.
Pew Research Center’s Race In America 2019 found that Democrats tend to have a more negative view of the current state of race relations than Republicans. About two-thirds of Democrats (67%) say race relations are bad, while Republicans are more evenly divided, with 46% saying race relations are bad and 52% saying they are good. These numbers indicate majorities of both Democrats and Republicans believe that there are still problems left to remedy with respect to civil rights.
Polling from Monmouth University in 2021 found that 43% of Republicans opposed the teaching of historical racism in public schools compared with 5% of Democrats. Majorities of Republicans (54%) and Democrats (94%) were in favor of teaching about historical racism. When asked a similar question about critical race theory, 78% of Republicans disapproved as compared to 15% of Democrats.
Policy on Civil Rights in the United States
Some examples of policies that protect civil rights in the U.S. include voting rights laws and anti-discrimination laws.
Anti-discrimination laws are policies designed to prevent discrimination against groups in matters of economic, social, and cultural discrimination. They cover areas like employment, housing, education, and public accommodations like restaurants and hotels. Some of the key groups included in these policies are characterized by race, color, religion, sex, sex identities and orientations, national origin, age, and disability.
In the past, affirmative action policies also aimed to moderate discrimination, most commonly in college admissions. Affirmative action is another of many tools that have been used in the U.S. to seek racial equality and justice since the Civil Rights movement. The policy has been challenged in court multiple times due to concerns that affirmative action hinders merit-based admissions decisions. It was upheld every time with only minor changes until it was banned in 2023.
As of 2025, President Donald Trump banned DEI policies with the argument that they are “dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences,” and they “undermine our national unity, as they deny, discredit, and undermine the traditional American values of hard work, excellence, and individual achievement in favor of an unlawful, corrosive, and pernicious identity-based spoils system.”
A Brief History of Civil Rights Policy in the U.S.
The main goals of the civil rights movement were to end discrimination, specifically that aimed at African Americans, and to secure equal rights and opportunities for all citizens. This movement served as the foundation of the history of civil rights policy in the United States.
Anti-discrimination laws in the United States were initiated in the Fourteenth Amendment following the Civil War, which included the Equal Protection Clause to protect formerly-enslaved people from discrimination. This effort was not effective at the time, as racial discrimination and discriminatory legislation such as the Jim Crow Laws proceeded blatantly. Over time, further efforts began to rectify the lacking protections, prohibiting discrimination in employment based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
It wasn’t until 1964 that President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law, following the actions of the civil rights movement, including many protests and demonstrations, as well as the rise of a number of influential civil rights figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. A year later, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 banned restrictions on the right to vote.
Further civil rights acts, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), set forth protections for other groups facing discrimination in employment, public accommodations, and other areas. Many other policies have been enacted along the same lines to protect other groups or bolster the protections already included to remedy issues such as pay gaps.
Affirmative action and DEI policies have followed the traditions of these acts, but have since been banned under President Trump’s administration, aligning with conservative and Republican values. Additionally, civil rights legislation for LGBTQ+ individuals has struggled to gain traction in the government.
What the Future Holds
The future of civil rights policy will likely be shaped by the ongoing debates around DEI, affirmative action, and the Equality Act. Democrats will likely continue to push for these programs. The Republican-aligned federal government poses significant opposition with initiatives such as Project 2025, part of which aims to limit and restrict DEI policies and similar programs.
To explore how each political party views other key policy topics, visit Biasly’s full list of Political Party Policy Stances.
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