By Jacob D
After the Revolutionary War ended, the Founding Fathers were busy at work trying to figure out how to get the government all set up. There was the one approach that gave the states all the power and a central government absolutely none. This style failed. So, they went back to the drawing board. What they drafted was the United States Constitution. In this constitution, there were ten amendments that were created to protect the people's rights.
Here are the rights:
o First Amendment: Freedom of religion, speech, press, to petition and to assemble. In other words, you are allowed to express yourself however you feel; however, it cannot harm other people. This is why the KKK can have their marches. If they lynch someone, though, they get in trouble.
o Second Amendment: The right to keep and bear arms. This amendment was created because of the need of a militia. It has been brought up time and time again that this is not of importance anymore; however, Americans are entitled to their guns.
o Third Amendment: There will be no quartering of soldiers in private houses during times of peace or war. The Townshend Act was enacted by the British before the Revolutionary War and this allowed them to keep soldiers in colonist's houses.
o Fourth Amendment: There will be no unreasonable searches and seizures. Basically, the police need a warrant to search your house and they can't just search because they feel like it. This has been abused quite a bit.
o Fifth Amendment: This is one of the most well known with the saying, "I plead the fifth." This means that you are entitled to due process and you don't have to worry about self-incrimination. Double jeopardy prevents the government form trying you over the same issue over and over again.
o Sixth Amendment: Right to a fair and speedy trial basically says that they won't prolong the case for years on end. You will have a fair trial and it will be done in good time. It is here, as well, that the courts are demanded to give you counsel if you can't afford it.
o Seventh Amendment: Right to a trial by a jury of your peers. This means that in any civil cases, you will have your peers there to determine your fate rather than a single judge. This is to prevent too much power going to one party.
o Eight Amendment: This is the one people preach when talking about capital punishment. There will be no cruel & unusual punishments which is why certain ways of execution have been done away with. There will also be no excessive bails or fines.
o Ninth Amendment: These are the unenumerated rights. Basically, these rights are the ones that are inferred from other legal rights. Basically, these are your fundamental rights that might not otherwise be mentioned. Privacy, for example, is an unenumerated right.
o Tenth Amendment: The Federal Government will only do what the constitution says and nothing more. This one has been abused a lot. Basically, the states make up the remaining decisions; however, because of their power, the Federal Government has been able to manipulate this. We won't give you this money if you don't do what we say.
The Bill of Rights is one of the most important documents and really provides a hope for freedom and liberties. The only issue that can come from this is when people are willing to throw their liberties away because they believe that it will give them security. Know your rights and always live by them. It is your constitutional right as a United States citizen.
Jacob is the co-founder and owner of a political commentary
[http://www.wethepeoplepolitics.com] web publication. He finds that an
important issue to write about is the fact that Americans don't know
their civil liberties
[http://www.wethepeoplepolitics.com/all-those-little-liberties-yeah-theyre-stillmine-president-bush/]
and how the government slowly takes them away from us.
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