The First Amendment of the United States Constitution

1064 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Significance of the freedom of speech

The United States Constitution was signed on September 17th, 1787. It did not include a bill of rights and it did not include their freedoms. And so, on September 25, 1789 Congress passed the first ten amendments, which were later ratified on December 15, 1791. The Bill of Rights was created by the Founding Fathers with the intent of restricting the powers of the new national government. The Bill of Rights, however, consists of 10 amendments. The first of the amendments was written because the people at America’s establishment wanted their basic freedoms guaranteed. Thus, the first freedoms guaranteed to citizens were written by James Madison and are now known as the First Amendment. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
The First Amendment of the United States Constitution protects and guarantees the freedoms of citizens. That being said, the court cases dealing with the 1st amendment involve a violation of either a freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly and or petition. And so, cases regarding religion deal with prayer in public schools, limiting the right to deny medical care for religious purposes, there being an official government church and the ability for citizens to worship as they please. Cases on the topic of free speech deal with symbolic speech, such as flag burning, and pure speech-verbal speech expressed before a voluntary audience. Many of the same things that deal with the freedom of speech also deal with the freedom of press. However, the freedom of press also deals with pr...

... middle of paper ...

...st Amendment Center." First Amendment Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. .

"First Amendment." LII / Legal Information Institute. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. .

"GITLOW v. NEW YORK." Gitlow v. New York. N.p., n.d. Web. Mar. 2014. .

Lewis, Anthony. Make No Law: The Sullivan Case and the First Amendment. New York: Random House, 1991. Print.

McBride, Alex. "Schenck v US (1919)." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. .

Urofsky, Melvin I. "New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (law Case)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. Mar. 2014. .

Show More
Related

  • The First Amendment to the United States Constitution

    2214 Words  | 5 Pages

    December 15, 1791 the First Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified, guaranteeing that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech." At an absolute minimum, the Establishment Clause was intended to prohibit the federal government from declaring and financially supporting a national religion, such as existed in many other countries at the time of the nation's founding (University

    Read More

  • The Constitution Swot Analysis

    1136 Words  | 3 Pages

    all of history, the Constitution of the United States.The Constitution establishes a federal government and establishes the basic rights of individuals and has a framework on how the government runs.” The Constitution has three main functions. First it creates a national government consisting of a legislative, an executive, and a judicial branch, with a system of checks and balances among the three branches. Second, it divides power between the federal government and the states’. Third, it protects

    Read More

  • The First Amendment

    886 Words  | 2 Pages

    The First Amendment is the first section of the Bill of Rights and is often considered the most important part of the U.S Constitution because it guarantees the citizens of United States the essential personal freedoms of religion, speech, press, peaceful assembly and the freedom to petition the Government. Thanks to the rights granted by the First Amendment, Americans are able to live in a country where they can freely express themselves, speak their mind, pray without interference, protest in

    Read More

  • The Second Amendment To The Constitution Of The United States

    986 Words  | 2 Pages

    Rights, which is the first ten Amendments to the United States Constitution. The second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States involves the right to bear arms. This Amendment is the subject of many present day controversies and cases. In 1787, the United States Constitution was drawn up for the first time by our Founding Fathers. Although the Constitution was beautifully crafted, it only stated what the

    Read More

  • How Did The Constitution Change Our Society

    629 Words  | 2 Pages

    whole country. You've most likely heard this numerous of times, but the United States Constitution drastically changed how the country runs. It is what shaped our country to become what it is today. Without it, who knows how our country would work. The Constitution is what makes living in the Unites States so desirable. It gives people say in their country and that's all citizens from other countries want. “The U.S. Constitution established America's national government executive brnd fundamental laws

    Read More

  • Flag Burning Pros And Cons

    1066 Words  | 3 Pages

    his disagreement by means of dramatically burning the American Flag outside of the ongoing Republican National Convention. Consequently, Johnson was charged for violating the Texas state

    Read More

  • Hawaii State Constitution Vs United States Constitution

    648 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hybrid Assignment One United States Constitution and Hawaii State Constitution has several commonalities and differences. The United States Constitution provides the blueprint on how the federal government along with states should function in a general prospective viewpoint. The Hawaii States Constitution take in consideration form a direct viewpoint on how a state should operator and conduct business from areas such as education, elections, and public health. Both of the documents are structured

    Read More

  • Essay On Bill Of Rights And Amendment

    642 Words  | 2 Pages

    Rights and Amendments. We hear them being referenced to in news stories and in daily conversations. But whether or not the typical or average American actually knows what either is, is questionable. It is important for people to be informed about the structure of our government and important features of the government as well. Amendments and the Bill of Rights are definitely two very important aspects of the American Government. An Amendment is an adjustment or specification to the United States

    Read More

  • 14th Amendment Essay

    1434 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Fourteenth Amendment What amendment to the United States constitution is considered to be illegally ratified? What amendment both grants the right to vote to men and then takes away that right to vote? If you answered the fourteenth amendment to both questions you would be right. Although most people think of the fourteenth amendment as being a "civil rights" amendment, it also defines citizenship, voting rights, and states congressional representatives and electors numbers. In this paper

    Read More

  • Difference Between The Federalist And The Anti-Federalists

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    new challenges. It was now up to the framers of the Constitution to come up with regulations for the new government. This proved to be no easy challenge between the Federalists and the Anti- Federalists. Anti- Federalists and Federalists After the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the founding fathers began setting up state and

    Read More

  • Comparison Between the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution

    981 Words  | 2 Pages

    Confederation. Shortly after that, a new document was formed to what we know as the Constitution of the United States. These documents were similar but more different at the same time with each other, and each granted specific powers to the national government. By throwing off the British monarchy it left the states without a central government. The states needed a new government and fast, which paved way for the first constitution, the Articles of Confederation. The Articles of Confederation was started

    Read More

  • American Constitution's Role In Our Society

    967 Words  | 2 Pages

    The American Constitution has an effective role in the United States society. The Constitution was created after the Articles of Confederation were proved to be too weak. The Constitution is an intention to establish our government and everything the people of America do is advised by the Constitution. The writing of the Constitution defines how the government constructs itself and explains the rights us citizens hold. It also explains the three branches of government, Legislative, Judicial, and

    Read More

  • Constitution: The Constitution Of The Constitution In India

    1963 Words  | 4 Pages

    INTRODUCTION Constitution can be described as the fundamental law of the land. It is the basis on which all other laws are made and enforced. We can all also that Constitution is mother of all other laws which draws their validity from it. It also sets the outline and authority and limitation for all laws farmed by the legislative body of any country. Making of Constitution is one thing and amending it another. Amendments are introduced as per the changing situations or as per will of the people

    Read More

  • The Constitution: The First Amendment To The Constitution

    812 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Constitution is defined by Oxford Dictionaries as “the basic written set of principles and precedents of federal government in the US, which came into operation in 1789 and has since has been modified by twenty-seven amendments”. The Constitution was originally drafted in Philadelphia in 1787, a year later it was ratified, and in 1789 was put into working order and referred to as the new government. However some states did not conform as quickly and felt there was a “lack of specific guarantees

    Read More

  • The Us Constitution Has An Impact On My Life Essay

    1122 Words  | 3 Pages

    country is who we are today based on an important document that changed our lives forever; The Constitution of The United States. This document is a revision of the Articles of Confederation that was ratified in 1781; the United States Constitution was ratified in 1788. The document contains 4,543 words and 27 amendments that are the reasons we can do the certain things we do today. The United States Constitution has an impact on my life as a college student living and working due to me being able to

    Read More

More about The First Amendment of the United States Constitution

Open Document