Protections in the Bill of Rights

PROTECTIONS IN THE BILL OF RIGHTSGuided Reading Activity Review

The Categories of Individual Rights Individual Freedoms – like freedom of

speech or freedom of religion.

Protections Against Government Abuse of Powers – unlawful searches or suppression of the press.

The Rights of Citizens Accused of Crimes – the right to a speedy public trial, the right to a jury trial, and protection from “cruel and unusual punishment.”

Freedom of Religion is established in the First Amendment, which states that Congress shall establish no national religion.

Freedom of Religion

The Separation of Church and State

Although it is not spelled out literally in the Constitution, the separation of church and state is the condition that the government may not favor any one religion or over the others and that Congress cannot establish any official religion for the United States of America.

Individual Rights Protected by the Constitution of the United States… Freedom of Speech – there are a few limits on your

freedom of speech, for example, you cannot slander another person or endanger people with your words.

Freedom of the Press – similarly, libel is prohibited and any false reports which knowingly cause panic are not protected.

The Right to Peaceably Assemble – The right to assemble and demonstrate against the government is allowed, but violence, threats, or hate speech is not.

The Right to Petition the Government – This right is a basic principle of American citizenship.

The Second Amendment “A well-regulated militia

being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The Founding Fathers believed in collective security, though, meaning that while individuals could own weapons, they must be accountable for them to the community.

The Third Amendment

Americans do not have to quarter soldiers in their homes during times of peace. This amendment is a vestige of the Colonial period, when American colonists – particularly in Boston – were required to quarter, that is, house and feed, British soldiers.

The Fourth Amendment All police officers or government officials

must have a search warrant in order to search through or seize property which belongs to you.

Only a judge or a magistrate can issue a search warrant – the police cannot give themselves permission to execute a search warrant.

Judges should not extend a search warrant to any part of the executive branch unless there is probable cause that a crime has been committed.

Eminent Domain Can the government simply seize your property for

the good of the public? Yes, it can.

The idea of eminent domain is that the government can seize private property for the public good.

The government, however, is required to pay all owners a fair price for these acquisitions.

Virginia Beach Middle School is an excellent example of the right of eminent domain in action!

Miranda Rights “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say

can and will be held against you in a court of law. You are entitled to have an attorney present when you are questioned. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you at public expense.”

Your right to a fair trial is guaranteed in part by the Fifth Amendment, the Sixth Amendment, and the Seventh Amendment, all of which establish “due process of law.”

One aspect of due process is the right to an attorney. Another is that you are not required to testify against

yourself in a court of law; this is established by the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution.

The Sixth Amendment You have the right to a speedy, public, and fair trial

in a court of law. You have the right to know what charges are being brought against you. You have the right to a lawyer – even if you cannot afford one. You have the right to face your accusers in Court.

You cannot be held in prison indefinitely without charges while the government collects evidence against you.

Why are the prisoners currently held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba not eligible for a speedy public trial and secure in these rights?

The Seventh Amendment

As long as the value in dispute is worth more than twenty dollars, the right to a trial by jury of one’s peers will not be denied. Trial by jury is considered an important right if we are to have faith in our legal system. But jury trials are by no means perfect.

But punishments were very different during the late 18th Century. Whipping and branding people was common practice. Tarring and feathering people was a common vigilante punishment. The death penalty was practiced in a variety of barbaric ways, including hangings and firing squads. Look at the information on the death penalty in American on the next frame!

Cruel and Unusual Punishment is Forbidden

Very few nations in Western Europe allow the death penalty, because it is considered inhumane. However, in the United States, the death penalty has been legal for some time. Texas and Virginia are two of the states which use the death penalty most frequently. African-American males are put to death at disproportionately high rates in many of the states where the death penalty is legal.

The Death Penalty in the United States

The Ninth Amendment “The enumeration in the Constitution of

certain Rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the People.”

In other words, just because the Constitution does not specifically state that Americans have certain rights DOES NOT mean that the People don’t have the rights.

The Bill of Rights is a partial list!

The Tenth Amendment “The powers not delegated to the United

States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the People”

Again, the Constitution is not an all inclusive document. Whatever shortcomings it has, the rights are deferred to either the state governments or to the People – who are sovereign.

A Series of Amendments Which Expanded Liberty and Promoted Democracy

Other Important Amendments

The Thirteenth Amendment This amendment was

passed at the end of the Civil War and abolished slavery. Every ex-Confederate State had to ratify this amendment to rejoin the Union. This amendment was passed in 1865 and ended the nightmare of slavery.

The Fifteenth Amendment This amendment to

the Constitution granted African-American men – not women – the right to vote in elections. Women would not be allowed to vote in national election for another fifty years – until 1919.

The Nineteenth Amendment This amendment to

the Constitution gave women the right to vote. Susan B. Anthony is perhaps the most famous suffragist to fight for women voters; however, she did not live to see the day that the 19th Amendment was passed.

The Twenty-Fourth Amendment This amendment to the

Constitution forbid states to charge a poll tax – which discriminate against poorer voters. (Virginia was one of the states which still allowed the practice.) Along with the grandfather clause, the literacy test, and intimidation practices, this was one method used to frighten African American voters from casting ballots.

The Twenty Sixth Amendment This amendment to the

Constitution allowed young people, eighteen years or older, to participate in elections. It was passed during the Vietnam War Era. Since many young men were fighting at dying for their nation at the age of eighteen, the public supported their right to participate in electing the government which might draft them!