One of the key components of the United States (US) Constitution is the Bill of Rights, which can be described as a declaration of the rights and freedoms of the citizens. Civil rights and liberties are considered a critical part of human existence. Since it was first established, the US Bill of Rights, has undergone multiple amendments, each of which has been intended to either clarify or correct an aspect of human rights as it applies to Americans. The effects of the amendments differ, but it can be argued that basic civil liberties are well protected. The focus of this essay is to examine the importance of the Bill of Rights. Most specifically, the essay will address the 1st, 4th, and 6th amendments US Constitution and explain their importance to the country.
The importance of the Bill of Rights can be generalized as the protection of civil liberties, including free speech and protection from cruel punishment. According to Head, the bill was initially controversial since the founding fathers had already decided against including a Bill of Rights into the 1789 constitution. The controversy revolves around the question of why such protections were not included and had to be added later in the form of amendments (Head). Several arguments can be given to this scenario, including the fact that the United States was a colony under considerable influence from the United Kingdom. Additionally, slavery was practiced, as well as having a male-dominated society where even the white women did not have the same rights. The African American slaves were not held with the same regard as the white plantation and mine owners, which may explain why the Bill of Rights was not important for the government. Therefore, the fact that the bill and its amendments introduced protections against these forms of treatments is an indicator of its importance.
To understand the importance of the bill, several amendments can be used to highlight what happens to the protection of civil liberties. The first amendment stated that Congress would not make laws that prohibited the free exercise of freedom of speech and press or the right of peaceful assembly. In short, the first amendment offered protection to such rights as speech, religion, assembly, petition, and press. The US is a democratic country and a nation that has been actively involved in spreading the principles of democracy across the world. The importance of the first amendment goes beyond protecting Americans and extends to expressing the true spirit of democracy. Cantor argues that nobody knew what the first amendment did or did not protect since most of its applications in courts came during the post-war period (7). Additionally, many people thought that only limited protections were offered to press and speech considering that the government could still punish speeches and publications deemed offensive or dangerous. The idea behind outlining these issues is that the first amendment may not have been comprehensive or clear enough to effectively offer the protections it promised.
The usage of the first amendment has been ambiguous, especially during the times when the US experienced such political climates as dissent. Additionally, the world wars may have hindered the application of the bill, especially after the US became involved. The freedom of speech and press had to be monitored closely due to the prevalent usage of propaganda (Cantor, 22). The ambiguities that arose may have worked against the importance of this amendment but there is an argument that it laid the foundation for future legislation as Congress sought to outline and clarify what protections were offered. Despite these shortcomings, the first amendment can be considered important since it gave Americans civil rights and liberties not previously included in the US Constitution.
The fourth amendment offered more protections for citizens from the government itself. The amendment stated that all people have the right to be secure, along with their possessions, and that unreasonable searches and seizures were also prohibited. Cantor expresses that probable cause has been the standard set for searches and seizures where these practices have to follow the law (312). Therefore, the fourth amendment is applied mostly by law enforcement as they deal with the citizens where courts can easily rule against them if breaches were found. The actions of the government are placed under checks and balances that further protect the civil liberties of the citizens. To understand the importance of this amendment, one can explore multiple cases where the rules have been broken by law enforcement officers and the implications that such actions have had. Alternatively, one can imagine a situation where government officials conduct arbitrary searches and seizures of private property without any cause. Such actions can be associated with dictatorships and autocratic regimes, neither of which are practiced in the country. The basic idea is that people are protected even from the government itself.
Many states across the US have experienced problems with the fourth amendment, especially as they increase their vigor in the fight against terrorism. The ‘stop and frisk’ has become a common police-citizen encounter, especially within municipalities. Additionally, government agencies are increasingly becoming involved in the collection of telephone and internet data on their citizens. Such actions are highly publicized since many people believe that they violate the fourth amendment. Such arguments are valid since frisking the person or the car is considered a search, for which an officer needs to have probable cause and a warrant. Innocent civilians do not have to be subjected to such encounters, a protection that should be effective under the fourth amendment. Therefore, it can be argued that these drawbacks are similar to those of the first amendment where the government fails to comply fully with the underlying principles. When fully observed, all Americans can enjoy the safety and security the fourth amendment offers.
Lastly, the sixth amendment was established as protection to individuals facing prosecutions. In this regard, the amendment requires that all criminal prosecutions enjoy the right to speedy and public proceedings conducted by an impartial jury. According to Cantor, the sixth amendment also offers several other protections, including faulty witnesses or those motivated by malice, jealousy, vindictiveness, or intolerance (222). A literal look at the amendment may imply that criminals are offered legal protection. However, it is important to acknowledge that the essence of the sixth amendment is that individuals are offered a fair trial to allow the innocent to be acquitted. Trial by partisan jury means that biases can play a critical role in the conviction and sentencing, which could be detrimental to the administration of justice. Conflicts between people are a common occurrence, which means that a court of law has to be effective when determining the guilty parties from the innocent ones.
The sixth amendment also requires that those individuals facing criminal charges be informed of the cause and nature of the accusation and to be confronted with witnesses. The right to the assistance of a counsel in defense is also a basic requirement. Therefore, it is apparent that this amendment is important in ensuring that justice is served and that all individuals can be deemed innocent until proven otherwise. Suspected individuals can be assured of their human rights and liberties under the Bill of Rights thanks to the sixth amendment. The right to freedom may be curtailed during the trial period, which explains why the basic requirement of the sixth amendment is a speedy trial. The intention is to ensure that the freedom of any innocent person can be restored as quickly as possible. Even those convicted benefit from the fact that their human rights and civil liberties are upheld during the entire trial.
In conclusion, the importance of the Bill of Rights has been outlined by exploring three of the ten amendments. The basic argument is that the Bill of Rights protects the civil rights and liberties of all citizens. The protection from the potentially rogue government practices ranges from speech, press, religion, and assembly. As for the fourth amendment, further protections in the form of prohibition of unwarranted searches and seizures are offered. In case an individual has been arrested and faces prosecution, the sixth amendment offers the same protections of civil rights and liberties by ensuring a speedy and impartial trial.
Works Cited
Cantor, Milton. The First Amendment under Fire: America’s Radicals, Congress, and the Courts. Routledge, 2017.
Head, Tom. “Why the Bill of Rights is Important”. ThoughtCo, Web.