...we want, and we petition and assemble when we feel it is necessary. What would happen if we never had these rights? The first amendment went into effect in the year of 1791, but up until that people did not have the rights to religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. The first amendment is arguably the most important part of the Bill of Rights due to its meaning, purpose, and lasting impact on the U.S. The first amendment is meaningful and purposeful in many ways. The first amendment states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom...
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...POS 301 Mark Koenig Rights and Freedoms of the First Amendment The United States Constitution gave us the several different rights and freedoms. We as Americans have the right to vote, speak our opinion, and worship freely. The Bill of Rights and Constitution were written over the last several years. The Constitution was written by the founding fathers of this country and is the foundational document of the United States. The First Amendment freedom that regards me the most is religious liberty. The First Amendment guaranteed by the First Amendments of the United States Constitution is the freedom to religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition. (Billings, Roberts, Haynes, Chaltain, Glisson, 2008). Religious liberty gives us the ability to go to church on Sunday or pray at our homes. Freedom of speech is in the Bill of Rights stating that we are allowed to speak out and express our opinions without censorship or restraint. We are also having the right to protest for organize for change and for justice. The freedom of press is the right to write newspapers and allow readers to know your opinion on a subject or topic. The freedom of assembly is the right to freedom of association is recognized as a political right, human right, and civil liberty. The freedom of petition is the request that is made to one that is in authority. Some examples of petitions are collecting signatures and sending them to elected representatives, writing or calling elected representatives, and...
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...I feel that the First Amendment is the most important Amendment to the Constitution. I feel this way because of the freedoms it gives us as citizens. Firstly, I’m going to start with the freedom of assembly. The freedom to assemble and protest has become more and more relevant since the results of the 2016 election. The most recent example, of course, was on Saturday, with The Women’s March on Washington. The protest was widely recognized not only nationally, but worldwide as well as other people from other nations protested in their cities. The freedom of assembly allowed for this protest to take place. The freedom of assembly has also let other groups and protests be formed in the past that have directly influenced our lives in the present...
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...and many people have died so we could have the rights that present today. The freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, and most importantly the right to petition our government; all of which fall under the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights. Our nation’s flag is an everlasting symbol of freedom and hope that stands as a testament to our nation’s power. Most importantly our flag represents the freedom of the individual to express his ideals as they see fit. Therefore when the very essence of Americans freedom is challenged by the “flag amendment,” that would forbid the desecration of the American flag, a dilemma forms. While flag burning is highly offensive, it is none the less a means of expression and is protected by the constitution of America. Forbidding an individual from expressing themselves is the opposite of what our flag represents. By protecting the American flag under a constitutional amendment not only conflicts with the First Amendment, but opens a door for the government to take away even more of our rights. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution, states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press; or the right of people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” [Source A] The First Amendment clearly gives all citizens of the United States the...
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...“The First Amendment freedom of religion is as important today as when the Bill of Rights was written” (First Amendment Quotes). The first amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America is one that most Americans know the meaning of. The actual wording of this important amendment is, “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” (Bill of Rights). This amendment states that a national religion will not be founded and it also gives Americans the ability to practice religion as they would like, without any...
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...The freedom of speech which we enjoy is contained within the rights protected under the First Amendment, a part of the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights was added to the United States Constitution as the first ten amendments in order to gain acceptance and ultimately the adoption of the Constitution. Many have questioned the intent of our founding fathers with regard to speech and the freedoms associated with it. Throughout history, there have been many interpretations of the First Amendment, and just as many questions pertaining to which types of speech are protected. When this country was founded, many of the principles that were important to our founding fathers were important because of their experiences with the British rule. They wanted to ensure the new country and system of government they formulated would protect specific rights of its citizens. The purpose of the First Amendment was to guarantee freedom from governmental control. The founders of our government had enough foresight to see that no other right would be secure without the rights guaranteed within the First Amendment (Kanovitz, 2010), thus it has been stated that this is the most important of all the amendments (Monk, 2003). They left the language general allowing for the ability to make changes to the Constitution (Tueber, 1988). There were five rights specifically stated in the language of the First Amendment. These rights were freedom of religion, the press, speech, assembly and the ability...
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...Reflections on the First Amendment HIS/301 January 15, 2015 Paul Betancourt Reflections on the First Amendment The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States protects the freedom of the American people. When asked about the First Amendment, many people would only think of the freedom of speech. However, the amendment reads: 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 (U.S. Constitution, amend. I). Over time, these rights have been challenged in various cases, six of which will be discussed in this paper. The common trend in these cases is that the First Amendment rights may always be tested, but in the end, they hold true in court. The freedom of speech and freedom of the press ensure that Congress cannot pass any laws or other amendments that would later take these rights away from the American people. The idea is that all people should be able to speak freely, and news agencies and reporters should be able to speak the truth, whatever it may be, to the citizens of America (Cornell University Law School, n.d.). However, there are times where saying certain things in certain scenarios could cause grave damage to the country, the U.S. government, or even the American people. In these cases, there have actually been exceptions made...
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...As part of our nation’s Bill of Rights, the First Amendment passed on September 25, 1789, in efforts to protect our religious freedoms and rights. The First Amendment states, 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. (US Constitution) This freedom established by our fore fathers continues to be important not only to me but to everyone in our society. So, what does the First Amendment guarantee? It helps to protect freedoms concerning religion, expression, assembly, and the right to petition. Our nation’s lawmakers, Congress, cannot promote one religion over another nor restrict an individual’s religious practices. The First Amendment allows for freedom of expression. It does not allow Congress to restrict the press or the rights of individuals to speak freely. It also guarantees the right for people to gather peacefully and to petition their government. The importance of religious freedom has been around a very long time. During our nation’s settlement, the pilgrims sought religious freedom. They wanted to find a place to settle,...
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...The Bill of Rights refers to the first ten amendments and its purpose is to safeguard individual liberties and limit the power of the government, ensuring citizens' freedoms such as freedom of speech, religion, and the right to a fair trial. The government can take away life, liberty, or property under specific circumstances, but it must follow the due process of law as outlined in the Fifth Amendment. This means that individuals are entitled to fair procedures, including notice and an opportunity to be heard, before the government can deprive them of these rights. The two amendments I believe are the most important are the first and fourth amendments. The First Amendment is crucial because it protects fundamental freedoms, including freedom...
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...Running Head: THE FIRST AMENDMENT [pic] Reflections on the First Amendment NAME University of Phoenix Online United States Constitution – HIS301 Reflections on the First Amendment Judged by the sheer number of cases brought to the Supreme Court for debate, the First Amendment can be considered one of the most controversial amendments in the Bill of Rights. The First Amendment was written to address three fundamental liberties all citizens have: religion, speech and peaceful assembly. On closer inspection, there are six very different ideals melded together into one defining statement. When the U.S. Constitution was signed on Sept. 17, 1787, it did not contain important freedoms that are now outlined in the Bill of Rights, because many of the Framers viewed some of the freedoms as unnecessary. However, after vigorous debate, the Bill of Rights was adopted. The first freedoms guaranteed in this historic document were expressed in 45 words written by James Madison that we have come to know as the First Amendment. The First Amendment states that “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.” Freedom of expression, artistic or otherwise in the United States is governed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution...
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...consisting of 10 amendments, was ratified into the constitution. The document’s purpose was to spell out the liberties of the people that the government could not infringe upon. Considered necessary by many at the time of its development, the Bill of Rights became the cause for a huge debate between two different factions: The Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. The Federalists were those who thought that there should be a new Union created with a strong centralized government and individual regional governments. They felt that it was not necessary for there to be a bill of rights because it was implied that those rights the Constitution did not specifically state would be handed down to the states. On the other hand, the Anti-Federalists were opposed to such a form of government on the grounds that the Constitution, in which it was outlined, lacked clarity in the protections of the individuals. The Anti-Federalists—whose memory of British oppression was still fresh in their minds—wanted certain rights and guarantees that were to be apart of the constitution (Glasser 1991). A clear demonstration of the Anti-Federalist attitude was performed by Samuel Bryan, who published a series of essays named the ‘Cenitnal Essays,’ which “assailed the sweeping power of the central government, the usurpation of state sovereignty, and the absence of a bill of rights guaranteeing individual liberties such as freedom of speech and freedom of religion (Bran 1986).” Of course, the freedoms stated above...
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...The Tinker vs. Des Moines case occurred in 1960 and the Tinker siblings weren't okay with the war so they did something about it. The Tinker siblings were upset because the Vietnam war was going on around the 1960’s. The siblings did not approve of the war and wanted peace instead of war. Because of this, they decided to protest by wearing black armbands with white peace signs on it. The school of Des Moines said that they would not allow protests to be done at the school. Tinker believed this violated the first amendment. It states citizens can protest without being punished as long as it is legal. The Tinker siblings were suspended and they were compelled to sue, given their circumstance. The case was taken to trial and was appealed to the...
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...First Amendment Paper San Juana Campos 4/15/2013 HIS/301 Mr. Garcia Introduction The ancestors ratified the first amendment of the US constitution in 1791, which formed the basis of Bill of Rights. It is imperative to assert that this amendment contains five provisions, which include choice of vocalization, press, and religion. Other provisions include the rights to petition, as well as assembly. The first amendment is critical since it shields some of the significant, fundamental human rights, as well as reflecting on concerns, which the government may ignore (Patterson, 2009). All these rights have limitations, thus prompting the Supreme Court to take primacy in passing the verdicts. Some of these cases relate to the five stipulations of amendment one. The distinguished cases include ‘Edward against South Carolina of 1963’ and ‘Hazelwood School District against Kuhlmeier of 1988’. The former case encompasses detainment of nonviolent protesters for unlawful conduct. The later is about liberty of expression in schools. Significant Cases Related to the Freedoms The case of Edwards against South Carolina occurred in 1963 when an assemblage of 187 Negros scholars gathered to express peacefully. This owed to the fact that they felt upset by laws of South Carolina, which purportedly forbidden their privileges. This group of lobbyists assembled at the spot of State administration...
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...The most important amendment of the Bill of Rights is the First Amendment. There are five freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment: the freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition. Another way to express this amendment is that it gives us our most basic freedoms as American citizens. The reason this amendment is important is because it protects an American’s citizen’s basic rights. There have been many challenges to this amendment over the years. Two of the primary challenges to the amendment are Bethel School District v. Fraser and Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District. In the case, Bethel School District v. Fraser, Fraser, a public school student, was suspended for using sexual references in a speech endorsing one of his friends for a student government position. Bethel School District decided to suspend Fraser which led to Fraser suing Bethel School District for violating his freedom of speech....
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...Freedom of Assembly Maria R. Quinionez-Sheehan St. Gregory’s University Freedom of Assembly Out of the first ten Amendments, called the Bill of Rights, the one that is considered the most important is the first Amendment. It is considered as such because it protects the rights that we hold dearest, and it is important to a democratic government by stating what it is not allowed to do. 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 U.S. National Archives and Records Administration , 2014). In 1787, James Madison received a letter from Thomas Jefferson discussing how wrong it was to not include a Bill of Rights in the Constitution, and made the statement "A bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth" (Exploring Constitutional Conflicts, 2014). One of the important rights guaranteed in the first Amendment, freedom of assembly, it is important to a properly functioning democracy. Political parties rely on this right, ensuring that they are free to interact with others in order to inspire confidence among their constituents and hold political rallies and conventions sponsoring presidential candidates. Society as a whole relies in part on the rights guaranteed by the first amendment, and limitations imposed...
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