Malcolm Rivera
The United States Constitution has been amended 27 times since it was put into operation on March 4, 1789. The first 10 amendments, known as the Bill of Rights, were ratified simultaneously on December 15, 1791. Amendments to the Constitution must be properly proposed and ratified before becoming operative. This can be done through a two-step process, with an amendment proposed and sent to the states for ratification by either a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and House of Representatives, or a national convention called by Congress on the application of two-thirds of state legislatures. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by three-quarters of the states. This article will provide an overview of the process and history of amending the US Constitution, as well as a summary of the key amendments and their effects.
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What You'll Learn
Understanding the ratification process
Ratification is a principal's legal confirmation of an act of its agent. In the context of constitutional amendments, ratification refers to the process by which a state consents to be bound by a treaty, with the term applying to constitutions in federal states such as the United States and Canada.
In international law, ratification is typically accomplished in two ways: for bilateral treaties, ratification is achieved by exchanging the necessary instruments, while in multilateral treaties, a depositary collects the ratifications of all states, keeping all parties informed. This process grants states the time needed to seek approval for the treaty domestically and to implement any necessary legislation to give effect to the treaty.
In the United States, Article VII of the Constitution outlines the ratification process for the entire document to come into effect. It required conventions of nine out of the original thirteen states to ratify the Constitution. If fewer than thirteen states ratified it, the Constitution would only be effective among the consenting states.
For subsequent amendments, Article V describes the process for their adoption. Proposals for amendments can be called by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress or by a national convention as a result of resolutions passed by two-thirds of state legislatures. For an amendment to be adopted, three-quarters of the states must ratify it through a vote of approval in their legislatures or by state ratifying conventions. Congress can specify the method of ratification.
In other countries, such as India and Australia, ratification processes may involve parliamentary scrutiny and the approval of both houses of parliament before the treaty can be ratified.
The People's Power to Shape the Constitution
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The Bill of Rights
The amendments of the Bill of Rights add to the Constitution specific guarantees of personal freedoms, such as freedom of speech, the right to publish, freedom of religion, the right to assemble, and other natural and legal rights. It also includes explicit limitations on the government's power in judicial and other proceedings.
The First Amendment prohibits Congress from making laws that establish a religion or restrict the free exercise of religion, abridge the freedom of speech, infringe on the freedom of the press, or interfere with the right to assemble and petition the government for a redress of grievances. The Second Amendment protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms, and the Third Amendment prohibits the quartering of soldiers in civilian homes without consent.
The Fourth Amendment safeguards citizens' right to privacy and protection from unreasonable searches and seizures, requiring warrants to be supported by probable cause and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. The Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Amendments guarantee various rights in criminal prosecutions and civil trials, including due process and trial by jury. The Eighth Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, and the Ninth Amendment ensures that the enumeration of certain rights in the Constitution does not deny or disparage other retained rights. Finally, the Tenth Amendment reserves powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution to the states or the people.
Amendment 17: Direct Election of Senators
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Supreme Court interpretations
The United States Constitution establishes the federal judiciary through Article III, Section I, which states that "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish." The Constitution permits Congress to decide how to organize the Supreme Court, and Congress first exercised this power in the Judiciary Act of 1789, creating a Supreme Court with six justices.
The Supreme Court has the final say on whether a Constitutional right has been violated and plays a crucial role in the constitutional system of government. It acts as the court of last resort for those seeking justice and exercises judicial review to ensure that each branch of government recognizes its power limits. The Court also protects civil rights and liberties by striking down laws that violate the Constitution and setting limits on democratic governments to prevent the majority from passing laws that harm minorities.
Article III, Section II of the Constitution establishes the Supreme Court's jurisdiction, or legal ability to hear a case. The Court has original jurisdiction over certain cases, such as suits between states or cases involving ambassadors. It also has appellate jurisdiction, allowing it to hear cases on appeal involving constitutional or federal law. The Certiorari Act of 1925 gives the Court discretion in deciding whether to hear a case when exercising its appellate jurisdiction.
The Supreme Court's interpretation of Constitutional Amendments has been described as more akin to common-law decision-making than a text-based approach. This interpretation has resulted in inconsistencies with the Constitutional text. For example, the First Amendment, which refers to Congress, has been applied to the President. Similarly, the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which mentions only the states, has been applied to the federal government.
The absence of clear guidance in the Constitution has led to debates about which specific rights judges should recognize and protect. This vagueness may be intentional, allowing judges to interpret the Constitution based on current conditions rather than the beliefs of past centuries. As a result, the Supreme Court has reversed itself and altered prior doctrines in various areas of constitutional law.
Amendment XIII: The Constitution's Radical Transformation
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The Reconstruction Amendments
The 13th Amendment, proposed in 1864 and ratified in 1865, abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. This amendment irrevocably ended the practice of slavery throughout the United States.
The 14th Amendment, proposed in 1866 and ratified in 1868, addresses citizenship rights and equal protection under the law for all persons. It defines all people born in the United States as citizens and requires due process of law. This amendment transformed the Constitution, shifting the focus from federal-state relations and property rights to the protection of vulnerable minorities and ensuring their substantive freedom.
The 15th Amendment, proposed in 1869 and ratified in 1870, prohibits federal and state governments from denying any citizen the right to vote based on race, colour, or previous condition of servitude. This amendment ensured that the newly granted voting rights of African Americans could not be easily repealed.
While these amendments were important steps towards establishing equality for Black Americans, their promises were eroded by state laws and federal court decisions in the late 19th century. It was not until the mid-20th century, with Supreme Court decisions like Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 and civil rights legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, that the full benefits of the Reconstruction Amendments were realised.
The Power of Youth: Voting Rights and the 26th Amendment
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State vs federal powers
The United States uses a system called federalism, which divides powers between the national and state governments. This allows states to test ideas independently, acting as "laboratories of democracy".
The Tenth Amendment, part of the Bill of Rights, was added to the Constitution in 1791. It clarifies that any powers not specifically given to the federal government, nor withheld from the states, are reserved for those respective states or the people at large. The original text is as follows:
> "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."
The Tenth Amendment has been interpreted as a limitation on the federal government, specifying that inferences about the federal government's powers are prohibited. The federal government's broadest power is the Commerce Clause, which has been used to regulate marijuana, for example. The Supremacy Clause in Article VI also makes federal law superior to state law.
However, the division of powers between state and federal governments is not always clear-cut. The federal government can incentivise states to follow its preferences through grants and mandates. The Supreme Court also plays a large role in defining these powers when it tests whether federal laws are constitutional.
Amendment 24: Banning Poll Taxes and Protecting Voting Rights
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Frequently asked questions
An amendment is a change or addition to the Constitution.
There have been 27 amendments to the Constitution, with the first 10 being ratified simultaneously on December 15, 1791, and known as the Bill of Rights. Since 1789, approximately 11,848 proposals to amend the Constitution have been introduced in Congress.
The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery, the Eighteenth Amendment established the prohibition of alcohol, and the Twenty-seventh Amendment deals with Congressional compensation.
Amendments are proposed and ratified before becoming operative. They can be proposed by the U.S. Congress with a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and House of Representatives, or by a national convention called by Congress on the application of two-thirds of state legislatures. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states.
You can read the amendments on the website of the Library of Congress, which provides the full text of the Constitution Annotated, including all 27 amendments.
