The Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights

Introduction

The United States bill of rights is a name that is given to the first ten amendments that were made in the constitution of the United States. These amendments limited the power of the federal government and gave more power to the citizens. James Madison wrote these amendments in the year 1789 and was based on the best ideas that were seen at the time as the best for personal rights. The amendments came into effect in the year 1791 when three-quarters of the total number of states in the USA were all in agreement that the amendments were fair (Waldron, 4).The conventions expressed their different desires when the constitution was being adapted to prevent any possible misconstructions for the possibility of having an abuse of power. Declaration and restrictive clauses were also added to ensure that this power is not abused. After extending the ground of public confidence in the government, it was assumed to be beneficial to the constitution. Two-thirds of the house in a resolution that was done by the state house representatives all assembled with the Congress members. They both concur that there should be an amendment in response to the legislation in the constitution of the United States.Regionally, there are 12 different forms of amendments that were contained in the bill of rights. However, the first two amendments were not accepted by at least three-quarters of the states. The second amendment that was not passed was added to the constitution later on in the year 1992. The main role of the bill of rights is to make sure that the citizen’s act responsibly and that the government does not abuse the power that ha haves. Freedom of religion, speech, and the press represent the demands of the public and shows the fundamental rights of humans as they as key to a peaceful existence. Through the press, the people can express themselves and things that are affecting them. They can put the leaders responsible for the actions that they have done, and they can express them on the price. Freedom of speech allows the people to speak their mind and talk to the press even against the government. Freedom of religion on the other hand advocates for rights to worship and that people do not have to be restricted to a particular type of religion. At the same time, religion shows the ability to put faith in one’s hand believing that there should be conscious on the decisions made and that the people deciding to join a religion are well aware of the consequences and the right worship.The fundamental freedoms covered speech, religion, press, and firearms among others.

 

Freedom of Religion

Freedom of religion is the right that individuals and communities have to manifest a belief or religious teaching or practice in their own right (Siegan, 3).  This amendment recognizes the freedom to change religion or decide not to follow religion. Freedom of religion can also be referred to as freedom from religion as people are allowed to exclude themselves from any form of worship or religion. This right is associated with a separation that the judge has on the state, the first amendment that was done to the united states for this right was done in the year 1971 and read as follows”…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….” (Tushnet, 6).Freedom of worship is the central principle behind the support that the community allowed to worship whether in public or private. The manifestation of religious belief and teaching should not be interfered with as a result of this principle. Freedom to change religion when one wants to change guarantees that people can worship where they want including switching from one denomination to the other. In the US, this freedom is considered to be a crucial and fundamental right of the people. This is because of the way people handles faith and belief. Some communities have communal religions that everyone has to follow. The US government has to permit religious practices to search for people not to prosecute believers of difference or other faiths. This ensures that the citizens of us have the right to believe in a group or a religion that they wish. The fact that the United States have a diversity of beliefs and practices makes it necessary to have a strong opinion and documentation that covers religion. Freedom of religion has allowed all these different faiths to flourish without problems. Majority of US citizens have a religious role to play are essential to the people and also contribute to the success of the country. The US has also had pluralism in diversity even before the colonial time. Some of the most famous religions that have existed in the united states for a long time including Anglicans protesters and even the Jews who arrived from Europe.

Despite the positives that are associated with this freedom, it does not go without several limitations. The assembly did not consider several threats that could be created by religion. In the past, religion themselves are prohibited people from doing things that are against they are written codes of contacts. Even though most of these religious practices have been helpful and have promoted peace in society, there are those religions that promote warfare and encouraged people to fight against each other. This makes it difficult for a community and a society that has for a long time been known to advocate for freedom of every person. The United States has had a difficult time dealing with terrorist activities that have been investigated by freedom of religion. The best idea that can be proposed to help solve this situation is to say that; freedom of religion should be allowed only if it does not incite violence or display forms of aggression that may invite warp or disrupt peace in the community. This way, everyone will be on board, and the religious doctrines will have to focus on the peace and prosperity institute of inciting violence.

 

Freedom of Press

Freedom of the press within the United States refers to the first amendment that was done to the United States Constitution to give freedom to the media houses. The amendment understands the role of information and opinions and prevent the government from temporary or interfering with the opinions and information that is being distributed to the people (Tushnet, 6). Freedom of the press is also subject to different restrictions including defamation law as well as the lack of protection that is given to whistling blowers. The protection that has been given to the press by the first amendment has resulted in several revolutions within the country. The government have been distracted and do not have the right to interfere with the publication or distribution of the information within the press. Distribution of the information should be fair and should not be tampered with in any way. Freedom of the press has been subjected to different laws suggest the formation in the past and have continued being the leading cause of concern-raising debates from experts as to whether the right and freedom of the press should be canceled or modified to suit the government. As the US is known for its campaign for the press freedom, with numerous advocates that are continuously campaigning for the press. Neither restriction of the press is the barrier to accessing information for constraining journalists through the hostility of the people. Before declaring independence for the media, the press was subject to several regulations as the British authorities prohibited the circulation of information that was not approved by the government. In the year 1734, there was a liberal case against the NewYork Journal published by Peter Zenger (Tushnet, 7). The cases about interference and constraints are a crucial part of these constitutional amendments. Freedom of the press has heard numerous challenges and limitations. Usually, various media houses have failed victims of spreading fake news and spreading hate and violence against the people. The prince has always been responsible for different mass actions and riots after spreading rumors and ideas that have sometimes proven to be false. Because the press has the power to change the opinions of the people and to influence and action from the people, it is always important to act responsibly address to invite people to be violent against each other. Also, it has becomevital for the press always to strive and publish the truth only. The best way that this amendment can be made is by publishing that;” the press is free to publish ideas and opinions that have been justified to be facts, and under no circumstances should they insight or course riot from the public, they should also strive to be neutral” (Waldon, 1).

 

The Right to Bear Arms

The right to bear arms have also become an important amendment to the constitution. It is the second amendments which regulate the public ability to keep bear arms. It is written that “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” (Siegan, 2).The addition of this amendment is to give the citizens an opportunity to find how to defend themselves against the operation. However, this amendment has caused several cases where people have abused the use of their arms by killing other innocent civilians. There are numerous states within the United States whereabouts are sold illegally, and people use their advantage of the amendment to possess these dangerous arms continuously. To help solve the situation, the amendment should read;” the government we regulate the position of the bear arms and determine those who can have them if there is a need.

In conclusion, the bill of rights is essential to a society that is well developed. However, they have not been successfully implemented as required especially those that deal with gun laws and freedom of the press. It becomes important for people to understand the bill of rights and apply them accordingly so that they are helpful to everyone in society.

 

Works cited

Siegan, Bernard. Property Rights: From Magna Carta to the Fourteenth Amendment. Routledge, 2018.

Tushnet, Mark. “New forms of judicial review and the persistence of rights-and democracy-based worries.” Bills of Rights. Routledge, 2017. 265-290.

Waldron, Jeremy. “A rights-based critique of constitutional rights.” Bills of Rights. Routledge, 2017. 3-36.

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