1. CHAPTER 19 CIVIL LIBERTIES: 1ST AMENDMENT FREEDOMS
CH THE UNALIENABLE RIGHTS
ADVANCED AMERICAN GOVERNMENT

2. A COMMITMENT TO FREEDOM
Personal freedom is deeply rooted in America’s colonial past
Revolutionary War was fought to preserve and expand these rights of the individual against the government
“…We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain alienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…”
A COMMITMENT TO FREEDOM

3. The American Constitution did not contain a list of rights for the people
BILL OF RIGHTS—Dec. 15, 1791
CIVIL LIBERTIES—protections against the government
Safety of persons, opinions, and property from arbitrary acts of government
CIVIL RIGHTS—example includes prohibition from discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religious belief, or national origin

4. LIMITED GOVERNMENT Government in the USA is LIMITED GOVERNMENT
Constitution guarantees personal freedoms and restricts what government can do
The difference between DEMOCRACY and DICTATORSHIP is the extent of the authority of the leaders
LIMITED GOVERNMENT

5. RIGHTS ARE RELATIVE, NOT ABSOLUTE
No one has the right to do anything they want
Free speech – but you can be punished for using obscene language or using words to incite a riot
WHEN RIGHTS CONFLICT
Freedom of the press vs. right to a fair trial

6. TO WHOM ARE RIGHTS GUARENTEED?
Most are for all persons
USSC says “persons” covers ALIENS also
ALIEN—people who are not citizens in the country they are living in
Citizens can travel freely throughout the country but Aliens could be restricted
Ex.—After Pearl Harbor, people of Japanese descent were forcibly evacuated from the west coast inland

7. USSC said this removal was legal during wartime
1988—US Congress apologized to those people still living and pay them $20,000
Muslims—Are their rights being violated since 9/11?

8. FEDERALISM AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS
Federalism creates a very complex pattern of guarantees of individual rights in the USA
BILL OF RIGHTS
First 10 amendments
Vth Amendment (p. 534)
Some provisions only apply to the national government, not states
FEDERALISM AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS

9. THE MODIFYING EFFECT OF THE XIVth AMENDMENT
“Due Process Clause”—”No State shall…deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law…”
What specific rights are “basic or essential”?
Most rights listed for the federal level are made part of the state rights by this amendment

10. PROCESS OF INCORPORATION
Combining most of the guarantees from the Bill of Rights into the XIVth Amend.
“Gitlow v. New York” (1925)
Gitlow was communist convicted in state court of criminal anarchy (speeches & pamphlets)
USSC upheld the conviction of Gitlow but made the following crucial point:

11. Freedom of speech and press, which the Ist Amendment says cannot be denied by the National Government, are also “among the fundamental personal rights and liberties protected by the Due Process Clause of the XIVth Amendment from impairment by the states.”
Other cases deal with other basic rights (p nd column & chart p. 536)

12. THE IXth AMENDMENT Not a complete list of rights
“The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”
Ex.—can’t be convicted by evidence unlawfully obtained or women have the right to an abortion without government interference
THE END
THE IXth AMENDMENT