Transcript Sources of our Rights

Sources of our
Rights
1.3
Essentials
 Essential Standards
 Evaluate the rights of individuals in terms of
how well those rights have been upheld by
democratic government in the United States.
 Learning Target
 I know the foundational documents that the
United States’ Constitution was built on.
1. Documents
 Magna Carta: took away power from
monarch: 1215
 English Bill of Rights: 1689
 Certain rights to citizens
 Declaration of Independence: 1776
 Constitution: 1789
 Bill of Rights: 1789
 Added for protection against gov’t abuses
2. Laws
 Gov’t laws
 Federal, state, local
3. Courts
 Rulings in courts, precedents (has this
happened before?)
 Decisions in court interpret meaning (2
kinds) of Constitution
 Loose: gov’t has more power than
Constitution gives
 Strict: gov’t has ONLY power written
Rights
1) Security Rights
 Protect us from the government
 some rights deny certain powers to the gov’t
 Article I: limitations on gov’t power
Rights cont.
2) Liberty Rights
 Protect our civil rights (rights given to all
citizens in a democracy)
.
 Rights for
the accused
 Most are listed in Bill of Rights
 5/10 Bill of Rights protect the accused
Rights cont.
3) Equality Rights
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All persons are treated the same
14th Amendment—all protected by the law
15th: suffrage (voting) for black males
19th: suffrage for women
Testing our Rights
 Prejudice: unfair thoughts to a group of
people
 Discrimination/racism: unfair actions
 14th Amendment: protects against both
Rights debated
 Affirmative action: gives “edge” to minority
groups and women
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Work, college
Reverse racism?
Bakke vs University of California
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TquKLF0sT54
 Glass ceiling: certain groups do not rise in
status in jobs, businesses