Jonah Patel
The Constitution is a set of laws that protect the rights of individuals and limit the powers of the government. It includes the Bill of Rights, which outlines specific freedoms and rights that are protected, such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press, as well as the right to keep and bear arms. The Constitution also lays out the powers of the federal government, including those of Congress. The rights contained within the Constitution are protected from state intrusion, and the government has a responsibility to uphold and defend these rights.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Freedom of religion | Protected by the First Amendment |
| Freedom of speech | Protected by the First Amendment |
| Freedom of the press | Protected by the First Amendment |
| Right of peaceful assembly | Protected by the First Amendment |
| Right to petition the government | Protected by the First Amendment |
| Right to keep and bear arms | Protected by the Second Amendment |
| Right to vote | Protected from racial discrimination by the Fifteenth Amendment |
| Right to be free from slavery | Protected by the Thirteenth Amendment |
| Right to be free from unlawful imprisonment or detention | Protected by the writ of habeas corpus |
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What You'll Learn
Freedom of religion, speech and the press
The First Amendment of the United States Constitution protects the right to freedom of religion, speech, and the press. It was adopted into the Bill of Rights in 1791.
The First Amendment prohibits any laws that establish a national religion, impede the free exercise of religion, abridge the freedom of speech, infringe upon the freedom of the press, interfere with the right to peaceably assemble, or prohibit citizens from petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.
The Supreme Court interprets the extent of the protection afforded to these rights. The First Amendment has been interpreted by the Court as applying to the entire federal government, even though it is only expressly applicable to Congress.
The First Amendment safeguards religious freedom, the free press, and free expression from interference by the federal government. It also protects the freedom to peacefully assemble or gather together or associate with a group of people for social, economic, political, or religious purposes, as well as the right to protest the government.
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Right to keep and bear arms
The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the right of the people to keep and bear arms. The original text, ratified on 15 December 1791, reads:
> 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 Second Amendment was originally intended to protect the security of the State, but its purpose gradually shifted towards the general safety and protection of life, liberty, and property. In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protected the right of all individual citizens to keep and bear their own weapons to defend themselves. However, questions remain about the limits of government regulation and who can possess guns.
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Right to vote
While the U.S. Constitution does not contain an explicit right to vote, almost all state constitutions do. The right to vote is protected by a series of amendments to the Constitution, including the 14th, 15th, 17th, 19th, 24th, and 26th Amendments. The 14th Amendment extends citizenship to all natural-born or naturalized Americans regardless of race and guarantees that the rights of citizenship, like voting, cannot be restricted by the states. The 15th Amendment prohibits restricting the right to vote due to race. The 17th Amendment requires states to elect senators by popular vote. The 19th Amendment extends voting rights to all women. The 24th Amendment explicitly bans poll taxes, which often prevented low-income citizens of all races from voting. Finally, the 26th Amendment extends the right to vote to everyone 18 years of age and older. These amendments give Congress and the federal government the power to enforce the amendments' protections of the right to vote through legislation, a power that Congress has used.
Despite these protections, the federal government and the Supreme Court are unlikely to protect voting rights in a substantial way in the near future. This is due in part to a voting-rights-skeptical Supreme Court and the Senate's failure to pass new voting legislation. As a result, it is up to the states to take action to protect voting rights. States can take steps such as removing barriers to voter registration, making casting a ballot as easy as possible, and passing a state-level voting rights act. Litigation under state constitutions could also be a way to protect voting rights. While voting rights cases are typically brought in federal court, legal observers have suggested they could be brought in state courts instead.
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Freedom from unlawful imprisonment
According to the Human Rights Committee, arbitrary or unlawful detention occurs when an individual is arrested and detained by a government without due process and without the legal protections of a fair trial, or when an individual is detained without any legal basis for the deprivation of liberty.
The Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment state that:
> 'Any form of imprisonment and all measures affecting the human rights of a person under any form of detention or imprisonment shall be ordered by, or be subject to effective control of, a judicial or other authority.'
Under Article 9(4) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, detainees have the right to challenge the lawfulness of their detention before a court, which should be able to order their release if the detention is found to be unlawful. Article 9(5) of the Covenant also provides for the right to compensation for victims of unlawful arrest or detention, including release from unlawful detention and financial compensation.
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Protection from state intrusion
The rights contained in the Bill of Rights were originally construed to apply only against the federal government and not against state or local governments. The rights of individuals were protected from state intrusion only by the state constitutions themselves.
The First Amendment protects freedom of religion, freedom of speech and of the press, the right of peaceful assembly and the right to petition the government. The Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms, for the purpose of maintaining a militia. The Third Amendment states that soldiers cannot be quartered in a house in times of peace without the owner's consent, nor in times of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law. The Fourth Amendment protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures. The Fifth Amendment protects citizens from being compelled to be witnesses against themselves in criminal cases, and guarantees due process of law.
The Tenth Amendment reserves all powers not given to the federal government, or prohibited to the states by the Constitution, to the states or to the people. The writ of habeas corpus was a common law procedure that allowed the courts to order the release of persons unlawfully imprisoned or detained.
During wartime, the government has also suppressed speech that it considers subversive, such as urging citizens to refuse to be drafted into military service. During the First World War, the Supreme Court concluded that the government could restrict such speech if it demonstrated that the speech posed a “clear and present danger” to the nation.
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Frequently asked questions
The First Amendment protects freedom of religion, freedom of speech and of the press. It also protects the right of peaceful assembly and to petition the government.
The Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms, for the purpose of maintaining a militia.
The Tenth Amendment reserves all powers not given to the federal government, or prohibited to the states by the Constitution, to the states or to the people.
The Thirteenth Amendment prohibits slavery.
The Fifteenth Amendment protects the right to vote from discrimination based on race.
