The US Supreme Court in 1873 Consolidated Several Pending Cases into into One

The U.S. Supreme Court in 1873 consolidated several pending cases into one ruling, which is known legally as The Slaughterhouse Cases. This ruling had great bearing on the Fourteenth Amendment. What was the impact of the case and its precedent?

A) The case strengthened the Fourteenth Amendment's protections and advanced the cause of civil rights for African Americans.
B) The justices ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment was unconstitutional.
C) The justices ruled that Congress had overstepped its authority in its initial passage of the Fourteenth Amendment and in the freeing of slaves in southern states.
D) The ruling declared that civil rights were under the protection of the state governments, not the U.S. Constitution; so many states did not recognize the Fourteenth Amendment and were not willing to advance civil rights in their individual states.
E) The case gave the Congress all powers to decide the level and reach of civil rights in the United States.