Government

1. Government

2. Chapter 19 Section 1

3. Objectives • Explain how American’s commitment to freedom led to the creation of the Bill of Rights. • Understand that the rights guaranteed by limited government are not absolute. • Show how federalism affects individual rights. • Describe how the 9th Amendment helps guarantee individual rights.

4. Civil Liberties vs. Civil Rights • People often get confused on the difference between civil liberties and civil rights. • Civil liberties can be thought of as guarantees of the safety of persons, opinions, and property from arbitrary act of government. • Examples of civil liberties would be freedom or religion, speech, and press. • Civil Rights are positive acts of government that seek to make constitutional guarantees a reality for all people. • Examples include making it illegal to discriminate against people based on race, origin, sex, or religious belief.

5. Bill of Rights • Bill of Rights-First 10 Amendments to the Constitution. (Need to know what they are) • When the Bill of Rights first came out, it only gave protection of our rights from the national government and not state governments. • This does not mean that States can take away our rights. Most of our rights are protected from the States because of the due process clause of the 14th Amendment. • The Supreme Court has heard several cases over the years in which their judgment protects our rights from the state courts.

6. Relative, Not Absolute • Many people believe that their rights granted by the government are absolute and cannot be taken away. • The truth is that our rights are relative, meaning that your rights cannot infringe on my rights. • For example, you cannot use your freedom of speech to harass someone or to provoke a crowd to violence. • The Supreme Court has also said in the case ApolloMedia Corporation v. United States (1999) that it is illegal for anyone to send obscene and intentionally annoying e-mail via the internet.

7. Chapter 19 Section 2

8. Constitution on Religion • The U.S. Constitution states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…” • This simply means that our government cannot establish an official religion(s), nor can it prohibit someone from practicing their religion.

9. Establishment Clause • Thomas Jefferson said that there needs to be a “wall of separation between church and state”. • How much separation there needs to be has always been a controversial topic in society. • The Supreme Court has heard a variety of different cases involving separation of church and state. • Issues that the Supreme Court has ruled on: • Prayer: Government cannot make anyone recite a prayer, nor are prayers allowed at football games or graduations. • States cannot require a “moment of silence” for religious purposes, it has to have a secular purpose. • Students cannot be forced to recite the Pledge of Allegiance due to the “under God” statement in the pledge. • The Ten Commandments cannot be posted in a school. • Public money cannot be given to private religious schools unless the money has a secular purpose.

10. Lemon Test • To help the Supreme Court rule on cases involving the Establishment Clause and state aid to private religious schools, the Court uses the Lemon Test developed from the court case Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) • Lemon Test: • The purpose of the aid must be clearly secular, not religious. • Its primary effect must neither advance nor inhibit religion. • It must avoid excessive entanglement of government and religion.

11. Free Exercise Clause • Free Exercise Clause: The provision of the 1st Amendment guaranteeing the free exercise of religion. • This means that a person can choose to practice any religion they want to, or not practice a religion at all as long as the religious practices do not work against public policy or the public welfare. • Supreme Court rulings: • Government can require certain type of vaccinations for school children. • Government can prevent the use of snakes in religious ceremonies. • Can prevent the use of illegal drugs in religious ceremonies.

12. Chapter 19 Section 3

13. Freedom of Speech and Press • The 1st Amendment also guarantees people the right to freedom of expression through the spoken and written word. • Even though you do have this freedom, it does have exceptions. • No person has the right to libel or slander. • Libel: false and malicious use of printed words. • Slander: false and malicious use of spoken words.

14. Permitted Restrictions on Expression • Clear and Present Danger Test: expression may be restricted if evidence exists that such expression would cause evils that the government could prevent. • Not allowed to say “fire” in a crowded theater when there is no fire • Bad-Tendency Rule: rule stating that speech or other 1st Amendment freedoms may be limited if there is a possibility that such expression might lead to some evil. • Cannot give speeches promoting terrorism or anarchy.

15. Obscenity • The government is allowed to prevent expression that it deems to be obscene. • The problem that the government has is defining what is considered to be obscene. • In trying to define obscenity, one Supreme Court justice said, “I know what it is when I see it.” • Test devised by the Supreme Court to determine obscenity: • The average person finds that it violates contemporary community standards. • The work taken as a whole tend to incite lust. • The work shows patently offensive sexual conduct. • The work lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.

16. Film, TV, Radio • Prior Restraint: restricting an action before the activity has acutually occurred. • The Supreme Court does not like the government to be allowed to censor people before they speak or write, but it has allowed censorship in certain areas expression. • The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulate what is allowed to be shown and said on the airwaves. The FCC does not use prior restraint to censor TV and radio beforehand, but can punish offenders aftweards. • The movie industry regulates itself through the ratings system.

17. Symbolic Speech • Symbolic Speech: Nonverbal expression of beliefs. • Symbolic speech is given substantial protection by the courts. • Examples of protected symbolic speech: • Flag burning • Picketing

18. Chapter 19 Section 4

19. Freedom of Assembly and Petition • The 1st Amendment guarantees the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. • Why would people want to assemble or petition the government? • Notice that it notes that it has to be peaceful, you cannot: • Incite others to violence • Block a public street • Close a school • Endanger life, property, or public order.

20. Time-Place-Manner Regulations • Government can make and enforce reasonable rules covering the time, place, and manner of assemblies. • These regulations must be content neutral, in that the government cannot prevent assembly because of what might be said at the event.

21. Public vs Private Property • If within the guidelines of the government, protests and assemblies on public property are usually allowed. • This is not the case with private property. In most states, the owner of that property has to give you the rights to protest, otherwise you could be charged with trespassing.