Background
The US Constitution is often thought of as the first document that laid down citizens’ freedoms and rights. While it is certainly true that the US Constitution has defined the basic democratic principles, there have been contradiction in the US history as to how these amendments should be applied. The possibility to interpret the US legislature differently runs along with the Supreme Court rulings that can be regarded in terms of Judicial Activism or Judicial Restraint depending on the case considered. This paper looks upon Constitutional provisions and Supreme Court’s rulings and discusses the impact they had on the American life.
The Supreme Court
There are several notable Supreme Court cases that have changed the legal industry since its founding. In some cases, the Court interpreted the law itself, in others adhered to its literal interpretation. Two cases will be looked upon to establish the difference in the proceeding and give an insight into how the Supreme Court works. The first case that stands out in terms of its interpretation by the Supreme Court is the case of Ocasio versus United States. Ocasio is a police officer who routed damaged cars after accidents to a specific car repair shop for which he received payoff. He was charged with using his official position to get money for his services from the repair shop that, in its turn, charged the car owners for repairs.
The Supreme Court found Ocasio guilty since his actions violated the Hobbs Act, 18 U.S.C. 371., that “prohibits the obtaining of property “from another”” (Supreme Court of the US, 14-361 Ocasio v. United States, 2019). In this case, the Court interpreted Ocasio’s actions as violating the Act, since he got his percentage of money from the sum paid by car owners. The Supreme Court disregarded technical details such as the fact the Ocasio was not paid by the car owners themselves and used Judicial Restraint, taking literary interpretation of the law.
The second case interpreted by the Supreme Court is that of Green versus Brennan. Green is an Afro-American who worked for the Postal Service and felt the he was denied a promotion due to racial issues. The Postal Service, in return, accused him of delaying the mail and asked to retire. Green felt offended and “41 days after resigning and 96 days after signing the agreement, Green reported an unlawful constructive discharge to the EEOC under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act., 42 U.S.C” (Supreme Court of the US. 14-613 Green v. Brennan, 2018). The Supreme Court found Green’s claim reasonable despite the fact that the law defines a “45-day period for contacting the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in a constructive discharge action” (Supreme Court of the US. 14-613 Green v. Brennan, 2018). Technically, having contacted the EEOC 96 days after the agreement, Green lost an opportunity to sue. However, the Supreme Court ruled that the period should be counted since the day of actual resignation, thus applying the Judicial Activism. In this case, the Supreme Court interpreted the law to grant Green’s request.
The Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is the unofficial name of the first adopted amendments to the basic law of the United States. These amendments came into force at the end of the 18th century and are designed to guarantee the personal rights and freedom of the US population. The text of the Bill of Rights enshrines the democratic rights and freedoms of Americans, as well as guarantees their implementation. The first amendments guarantee the protection from various kinds of discrimination, and widen the citizens’ rights. The Bill of Rights was of great importance in the development of democracy in America and served as an example to other countries. Moreover, the amendments were used to draft the UN’s “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” in the post-war period.
With the adoption of the amendments, the most important issues of concern to the population were resolved – the amendments established the limits of the state’s power in relation to a citizen. The Bill of Rights prohibited Congress from passing laws that restricted freedom of expression. The mass media were given the right to freely criticize the authorities, and citizens could hold peaceful rallies and petition the government (US Constitution). Citizens could practice any religion, and they were allowed to carry weapons. The defendant received the right to be judged by witnesses and the right to an impartial public trial. A ban on very large fines was introduced, and cruel punishments were prohibited. The historical contradiction of the Bill of Rights lies with the fact that while proclaiming rights and freedoms, it did not abolish slavery, thus diminishing its significance for many people living in the US. Moreover, a large part of the population still could not take part in the political life of the country.
The Patriot Act
The Patriot Act was adopted after the terror attacks of the 11th of September, 2001. In many ways, it can be seen as an overreaction to the events of that period since its adoption signified a clampdown on many rights and freedoms. Thus, the Patriot Act gave the US law enforcement agencies powers that they had not had in the entire history of the American state. In particular, telephone conversations, SMS correspondence, as well as e-mail of any citizen could be subjected to full control if the special services deemed it necessary for ensuring national security (The USA Patriot Act: Preserving life and liberty). Moreover, the FBI received the right to check which books a suspicious citizen took from the library, which sites he visited as well as to request any additional information about a person in other government and commercial institutions. The unprecedented surveillance, in many ways, undermined the amendments adopted in the Bill of Rights and the return to the proclaimed freedoms happened only after the Act was abolished.
The 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments
The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments of the Constitution paved the way for the liberation of slaves, a process associated with the name of Abraham Lincoln. He adopted the Emancipation Proclamation that proclaimed freedom for all the slaves in “rebel states”. The Emancipation Proclamation was followed by protests against segregation held on the 5th of May, 1963, Alabama, with a parade of 25 schools. The people held one reading which said “God is love” (The road to freedom. Black history & The civil rights movement). Lincoln was well aware that emancipation did not have a solid constitutional and legal basis. Only an amendment to the Constitution could finally decide the fate of slavery before the end of the war.
Lincoln managed to pass through Congress the 13th Amendment, which irrevocably abolished slavery in the country. In July 1868, the U.S. Congress adopted the 14th amendment to the Constitution of the country, which became one of the most important. It stated that all people born in the US were the country’s citizens (US Constitution). The citizens could be deprived of the right to life, liberty and property only by a court decision, and not by any restrictive laws. On the basis of the 14th Amendment, the rights of the black population were asserted. In 1870, the 15th Amendment to the Constitution was adopted; it granted voting rights to all the citizens regardless of skin color or race (US Constitution). Thus, finally, the right to freedom proclaimed by the Bill of Rights triumphed over the whole territory of the USA.
References
Supreme Court of the US. 14-361 Ocasio v. United States, 2019.
Supreme Court of the US. 14-613 Green v. Brennan. United States, 2019
The USA Patriot Act: Preserving life and liberty. Web.
The road to freedom. Black history & The civil rights movement. YouTube. [Video] Web.