Constitution and the First Amendment SP22.ppt

The U.S. Constitution and the First Amendment  A brief overview of the Constitution Written in response to the problems of the Articles of Confederation: Like…? No power to tax or raise army; only unanimous changes Main goal: make a government st...

The U.S. Constitution and the First Amendment  A brief overview of the Constitution Written in response to the problems of the Articles of Confederation: Like…? No power to tax or raise army; only unanimous changes Main goal: make a government strong enough to run a country, but weak enough to avoid abusing power Written from May to September 1787 Ratified by the 9th state in 1789 Is the US Constitution legitimate??? First state? 2nd? 3rd?  Key Principles of American Republic Government Any government is legitimate only if… …with the consent of the governed Therefore “We the People…Ordain” People are basically _____________ Corrupt Therefore we need Separation of Powers National governments tend to usurp ______ power Therefore Federalism is established and Limited Government must be the goal  A quick peek at the Constitution PREAMBLE: The purpose of the Government More perfect Union Establish Justice Insure Domestic Tranquility Provide for the Common Defense Promote the general Welfare Secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves Preamble Video Rock and our posterity A survey of the Constitution ARTICLE 1 The Congress ARTICLE 2 The Presidency ARTICLE 3 The Courts ARTICLES 4-7 General  From the Constitution analysis Age & residency / citizenship requirements and length of term for each representative in Congress, President & Justice Be sure to know who does the following: Declares War, raises the army, builds a navy Leads the Military Raises taxes, cuts taxes Nominates judges Approves treaties / nominees Establishes patents, postal system, and measurements  A word about amendments An amendment is a change There are two ways to amend the Constitution – through Congress or through special state conventions All changes must be ratified by ¾ of states WHY these two methods?  How many times have we changed the US Constitution? Thousands of suggestions have been made There are 27 official amendments (1992) But…. The first ten were passed together Amendment 21 repeals Amendment 18 So it’s like 16 actual changes in 225+ years Let’s compare FRANCE 17 ITALY S.KOREA 15 9  What is an “Agency” Example: Environmental Protection Agency  Major Assignments Coming Up Test on Unit #1 on Wednesday (Oct 5) Essay on First Amendment in two weeks Outline on First Amendment due next Friday (pp. 429 – 447 Free Speech)  The First Amendment The Greatest of your Constitutional Rights Freedom of Religion Freedom of Speech Freedom of the Press Freedom of Assembly Freedom of Petition (Generally called civil liberties)  The Religion Clause “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;” Basic Provision: Freedom of Religion  Historical Context Official churches of various European governments Gov’t position requirements, closing houses of worship, jail, torture or death for dissenters (1520 – 1650 particularly) Many dissenters settled in America Their descendants feared the power of the new national US government  Historical Context Congress could not make such laws, but states and local governments could Freedom of religion was understood in a Christian context (therefore no funeral pyres, animal sacrifices, sorcery, orgies, polygamy, cannibalism, etc.) The assumption was that America’s people would be overwhelmingly Christian  Historical Context Paid Chaplains of the Congress & military Opening prayers in Congress & Supreme Court George Washington’s National Day of Prayer Abraham Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Day Proclamation Bible as school textbook and moral guide Public prayers in public schools National motto – In God We Trust Supreme Court ruling  The difficulty of the our modern interpretation… Preamble to the CONSTITUTION of the COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA WE, the people of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, grateful to Almighty God for the blessings of civil and religious liberty, and humbly invoking His guidance, do ordain and establish this Constitution.  Modern Interpretation The government should be neutral in regard to religion, neither promoting nor discouraging any specific religious view Hyde Park (NY) (Bible) & Abington (PA) (Prayer) Your freedom of religion ends where it violates the rights of others or where it is a clear affront to the morals of the community Turn to a neighbor and come up with three expressions of religion that are controversial in America today  Some modern church – state controversies Holidays: Christmas Trees? Halloween Parades? Bible Clubs and churches meeting in schools Teaching Creation Science in public schools Passing out literature in public schools Food offerings in schools, hospitals, jails, etc. Wearing of jewelry, head coverings, beards, etc (Reasonable accommodation is required in the workplace!)  Modern Freedom of Religion Controversies Snake Handlers Faith Healers and medical restrictions Doctors objecting to certain tasks of the profession Religious surgeries Polygamy Non-traditional religious ceremonies (Animal sacrifices and fertility celebrations)  Congress shall make no law… Abridging the freedom of speech Or of the press  Historical Context The reality of trying to change bad kings…. Speech and Press were intended as political expressions; criticism of leaders was to be legal A particularly troubling practice Patrick Henry was “prior restraint” of newspapers and speakers (censorship)  Freedom of Speech / Press Historical Context What would they have said about: Hand-written leaflets? Fired from work for weekend rallies? Shouting curse words? Printing lies? Showing up in court with purple hair? Wearing T-shirts to school with enlarged human anatomical structures emblazoned thereon?  Modern Interpretation Your right to free speech has now effectively become “freedom of expression” The magazines you read How you dress & wear your hair People with whom you associate Money you give to political candidates Bumper stickers Symbolic Speech is non-verbal but protected! (Actions, flags, colors, etc.)  Modern Interpretation- Free Speech Your right to free expression is not absolute Your right to free expression is not absolute (Political & Religious Speech vs. Commercial vs. Illegal) Your right to freedom of expression ends: when it incites violence or law breaking when it puts others in foreseeable danger when it threatens or harasses another person when it is a clear affront to community morals (obscene, vulgar, illegal, etc.) when it is provably untrue (defamation & false advertising) when it’s under legal confidentiality (spies, medical, gag orders)  Free Speech Sometimes one’s message is perfectly legal and protected, but there are other considerations of society: Time, Place & Manner Restrictions Loudly shouting, “Beer Here!” might be fine at a stadium during an event but ILLEGAL at 3 in the morning while on the streets of a residential neighborhood. The government doesn’t control the content of the expression, only the Time/Place/Manner of it  Speech and levels of protection Fully Fully Protected Legal Protected under Legal but under First but regulated First Amendment regulated Speech Speech Amendment activity Illegal Illegal Speech Speech Curse words on TV Door to door TV sales A threatening sign ”BLM : we’re going to get you” Door to door political canvassing Asserting that Trump is a fascist Private conversations on racial hatreds Conspiring to commit a crime Flag burning Pornography Expressing opposition to gay marriage Incitement to crimes: Yelling, “Burn the Racist Police Station!” at a protest Refusing to stand for the Pledge until transgender athletes can compete  Modern Interpretation- Free Speech Public Schools are a special case since students are Public Schools are a special case since students are required to be there, and since it is not as public as a street corner Schools are given leeway to determine what sort of expression disrupts from the “educational goal” Tinker vs. Des Moines Students do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate” Ockenhouse Narrow vs. Student exception: “substantial Thompson disruption” Self-Portrait at New Hope Art Show  Tinker is further defined… Bethel SD vs Fraser (Captive audience and clear offense) Hazelwood SD vs Kuhlmeier (School censoring its newspapers) Principal Morse vs J.Frederick (Bong Hits for Jesus) Harper (Right to be left alone vs. political speech)  Free Speech Modern Controversies Burning the American Flag or the Koran Hate Speech (different from Hate Crimes) & Free Speech Zones Protests / Civil Disobedience Lying, bragging & exaggeration puffing, resumes, claims of credentials Thought question: Who is NOT restricted by the national Do Not Call lists? Why?  More heated controversies Bullying vs. teasing vs. trashtalking vs. “Just Kidding” Off school? School devices? School talk? Opinions or harassment? Therapeutic venting? Is it public or private? Are unpopular views threats? Ridiculing another’s religious beliefs or expressing disapproval of gay / gender issues without attacking a person’s core essence Child Pornography, Sexting and simulated images  Congress shall make no …abridging… law… …the right of the people peaceably to assemble  Historical Context The goals of the British government The recognition of political meetings Emphasis on PEACEABLY  Modern Interpretation Emphasis on PEACEABLY Political Religious Social Commercial Emphasis on SAFETY Fire exits / crowd control / trash issues Reasonable foreknowledge of problems  Congress shall make no law… …abridging… …the right of the people… to petition the Government for a redress of grievances  Historical Context The Enlightenment Philosophy of writing things down The belief that one ought to have a right to suggest, plead, persuade and demand action by a govern-ment “for the people” without fear of consequences  Modern Interpretation Hardly controversial! Editorials and petition signature drives Letters, phone calls, emails, faxes, visits to offices of our representatives Only one example of a limitation…  Freedom of Speech outline The philosophy of this civil liberty The historical stages of this right Examples of speech Fully protected Legal, but restricted Illegal How have Hate Speech laws fared? (Different from Hate Crimes laws)  Your Essay Find any article dealing with the First Amendment Summarize the article React to the article thoroughly, make explicit connections to class topics / concepts Must include a Chicago-style bibliographic citation