Civil Rights & Civil

Liberties
Introduction to
Mr. Royer
 Essential Questions:

1. What are my civil liberties and why aren’t they

absolute freedoms?
2. How does the Constitution protect civil rights?
3.
3.
 What is the difference
between Civil Rights and
Civil Liberties?
 Essential Question #1:

1. How does the Constitution protect civil rights?

2. What are my civil liberties and why aren’t they
absolute freedoms?
• Civil Liberties are not absolute! Remember John Locke?
We can’t live in a world of perfect freedom (absolute
freedom). In that world, no one is free; since there are no
restrictions on liberty, our behavior will interfere with our
neighbor’s rights and liberties.
• Actual freedom can only be obtained by giving up perfect
freedom to gain practical freedom.
• In other words…
“My right to extend
my arm ends at
your nose”

Most of our individual civil liberties are protected in the

first four Amendments to the U.S. Constitution
 First Amendment Acrostic

G •
Right to Petition the Govt.
for redress of Grievances
R •

•
Freedom of Religion

A •

•
Freedom of Assembly

S •

•
Freedom of Speech

P Freedom of Press
•
 The Right to
Keep and Bear
A well regulated Arms
Militia, being • The 2nd Amendment
necessary to the protects the right of
security of a free each State to form and
State, the right of keep a militia.
the people to keep • Some believe it also
and bear Arms,
shall not be sets out an individual
infringed. right to bear arms.
Protection Against
Quartering Troops in
Peacetime
 Security of Home
and Person

The 4th Amendment protects

against “unreasonable searches
and seizures” without a warrant or
probable cause.
 Essential Question 2:

1. What are my civil liberties and why aren’t they

absolute freedoms?
2. How does the Constitution protect civil rights?
3.
3.
 Civil Rights
Protections
Civil Rights refers to equal treatment of all citizens under the law. The
Constitution prevents legal discrimination among citizens in several
places beyond the original 7 Articles:
th
1. The 5 through 8th Amendments deal with “due process” rights in
court
th
2. The 13 through 15th Amendments address the issues of slavery,
citizenship, and voting rights for former slaves.
th rd th th
3. The 19 , 23 , 24 , and 26 Amendments extend voting rights to all
citizens in the United States (We will look at voting rights separately
in a future lesson).
4. Civil Rights are also protected under the Civil Rights Act of 1964

making it illegal for businesses to discriminate on the basis of race,

color, religion, sex, or national origin. Recent Supreme Court
interpretation of the Civil Rights Act have extended these rights to
 Civil Rights
•
What are my due
process rights and
why are they
important to
me?
Essential Question – Rights of the Accused
5th, 6th, and 8th Amendments
• What are my rights if I am arrested
and charged with a crime?
 2. 1.
Grand
5.No3. ToJury
NoArrest be or
forced
4. No Cruel
informed
Preliminary
confessions
Without of or
the
or
8. No double
Unusual
7. Right
9.10.
Hearing to
Right
11.
charges aagainst
Right
Right
to to –to
Right togo
Probable
illegally to
Cause thetoor
seized
jeopardy
6.Punishment
speedy
challenge
annot
ublic
refuse
compel
Habeas
cross
be
and
trial.
evidence
assistance
12.
Excessive
trial
against
to
–
to witnesses
you.
tried
Right
by
examine
and
testify
Corpus
can
testify
used
ofto
aFines
yourself
be
by
I-9 5th 6
wice for
counsel same
appeal
or(lawyer)
Bailyour
jury of
witnesses peers
subpeona
–Self
against
crime
conviction
you due to
Incrimination
violations of due
process
th
4 &
6th 6
5th

6th 5th 6
There are four rights guaranteed in the 5 th Amendment
1. No person can be accused of a serious crime without
Indictments by a grand jury.
2.

A grand jury of 16-23 members is the formal device by which

a person can be accused of serious crimes in federal courts
under the 5th Amendment.
Most States have legislated to skip the grand jury stage using
preliminary hearings instead.
1. No Double-Jeopardy
2. No Self Incrimination
3. Right to Due Process (Cannot be deprived
of life, liberty, or property without due
process of law)
 Rights to an Adequate Defense
Some rights of the accused (6 Amendment):
th

1. to be informed 2. to be
of the content and confronted with
form of the the witnesses
accusation against her/him
3. to subpoena 4. to have a lawyer
witnesses to speak in his/her
testify on his/her defense
behalf
• The 8th Amendment forbids
“cruel and unusual punishment or
excessive bail or fines.”
 The Civil War Amendments

● 13th Amendment
•

• abolishes slavery and ● 14th Amendment

all forms of involuntary •

servitude • Grants citizenship for

all people born on U.S.
soil (including former
slaves) and
• guarantees equal
protection under the
law
• extends Federal civil
rights and due process
protections to state laws
 History of Segregation in
America & the American
Caste System
• Civil Rights have not been protected equally
• Segregation & Jim Crow laws
•
Separate-But-Equal Doctrine,
•

• Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896

•
Desegregation
•

•
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 1954
•
Voter Suppression & Discrimination (Future Lesson)
The Rest of the Amendments to the Constitution

1 3
Amendments to the Constitution

1 3
 Check-up!
• What does the Writ of Habeas Corpus protect?
Protection from imprisonment without due process of court
• What is a Bill of Attainder?
Bill convicting you of a crime and punishing you without
• What
trial is an Ex-Post Facto law?
“After the fact” – a law cannot be applied retroactively
What does the 1st Amendment protect?
Grievances
nd Right to bear arms Religion
2 ? Assembly
3rd?No quartering of Speech
troops
th Unreasonable Press
4 ? Search and Seizure
5th?Rights of the Accused
6th?Rights of persons on trial
8th?No Cruel and Unusual