Kristin+C.

What the amendments are and what they mean.

__Amendment__ __1__: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. __Meaning__: Freedom of speech, press, religion, and petition. This means we can say what we want and not be arrested for it. We can speak our mind. Freedom of press means that our newsources have the right to report on news about our government adn the state our country is in (we often take this for granted). We also have the right to practice any religion that we wish to practice. The freedom of petition means that we can petition our government to make changes.

__Amendment 2__: A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. __Meaning__: Americans have the right to keep and bear arms, for self-protection.

__Amendment 3__: No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law. __Meaning__: In a time of peace, a houseowner doesn't have to let a soldier into thier house to stay. Unless that houseowner has agreed to house that soldier. Or in time of war, only by law can a soldier be housed by a houseowner, without their consent.

__Amendment 4__: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. __Meaning__: A person's personal stuff may not be searched, unless a warrant is given because they have a probable cause. The same is for sieze an object while searching.

__Amendment 5:__ No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation. __Meaning__: You have the right to remain silent during a hearing. You do not have to answer any questions. A person may not be excuted without the due process of law. Private property of that criminal may not be shown in public without compensation from law or the criminal.

__Amendment 6:__ In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense. __Meaning:__ In short we have the right to have lawyers, witnesses and other things in court that could help us to be proved innocent. We also have the right to have a speedy trial.

__Amendment 7:__ In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law. __Meaning__: This means we have the right to be judged by a jury. And not, automatically put in jail for the rest of our life's without that trial.

__Amendment 8__: Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. __Meaning:__ We do not need to be continuosly bailed out of jail, and cruel punishment is not allowed to be inflicted on a cellmate.

__Amendment 9:__ The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people. __Meaning__: The Constitution may not be resconstructed to take certain rights away from the people.

__Amendement 10__: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. __Meaning__: Any power that is not given to the federal government, and not prohibited to the States, is given to the Sates, and the people.

__Extra Info:__ Federalist thoughts: A listing of rights can be a dangerous thing. If the national government were to protect specific listed rights, what would stop it from violating rights other than the listed ones? Since we can't list all the rights, the Federalists argued that it's better to list none at all. To get more people to ratify the Constitution, they agreed to draft the Bill of Rights, after the Constitution was ratified.

Anti-Federalist thoughts: They would not ratify the Constitution without a Bill of Rights to protect the rights of the poeple. They argued that they had just fought a war to get their freedom, why let this new government take it away so quickly? So basically, it was the idea of the Anti-Federalists to have a Bill of Rights. IMPOTANT: THE BILL OF RIGHTS WAS ADDED TO THE CONSTITUTION AFTER IT WAS RATIFIED!!! iT WAS NOT ORIGINALLY PART OF THE CONSTITUTION!!! THEY ARE AMENDEMENTS (meaning they are changes made to the Constitution.)!!!

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