What is the modern status of the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment?

• A. It protects certain rights of national citizenship but has limited application after Slaughter-House; most rights are protected through the Due Process or Equal Protection Clauses.
• B. It is the primary route for incorporating rights against the states.
• C. It applies broadly to all rights not enumerated.
• D. It is never used in constitutional adjudication.

Answer: (A)

The Privileges or Immunities Clause was meant to safeguard certain rights tied to national citizenship from state action. But after the Slaughter-House Cases, its scope was drastically narrowed, so it protects only a very limited set of national privileges rather than a broad array of rights. In today’s practice, most rights against state action are protected through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, with the Equal Protection Clause invoked in many contexts as well. The Privileges or Immunities Clause has occasional, narrow use—the clearest modern example being the recognition of the right to travel as a fundamental national privilege—but it is not the main route for protecting rights.