Glossary

Lucrative

extremely profitable

Lynch Mob

a group of people set on killing an alleged criminal outside the justice system, usually in a public manner, meant to punish and intimidate

Madeira

A fortified wine made in Portugal.

Magna cum laude

denotes a college degree earned with great distinction

Majority Opinion

An opinion joined by a majority of the justices explaining the legal basis for the Court’s decision and regarded as binding precedent in future decisions.

Massive resistance

the widespread opposition of many white Southerners to the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954). In 1956, two years after Brown, the overwhelming majority of Southern congressmen and senators signed the “Southern Manifesto,” a document that condemned the decision.

Massive resistance

the widespread opposition of many white southerners to the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954).

McCulloch v. Maryland

The Supreme Court decision under Chief Justice John Marshall that determined the supremacy of federal laws over state laws in certain circumstances.

McGuffey Reader

Reading textbooks for 1-6 grade that were widely used in American schools in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Merchants

A person or company who trades goods.