The First Amendment of the Constitution written during the summer of 1789 was the first added to The Bill of Rights. Although they were not a part of the original Constitution they came as the first addition. The Bill of Rights came about mainly as a result of Antifederalists who had criticized the Constitution for its lack of individual rights. When some states refused to approve the Constitution the Bill of Rights were adopted in order to ensure a number of personal freedoms to the people of the United States.

A congressional committee along with James Madison recorded and discussed the conditions that would become the Bill of Rights. By holding a convention of the States, an agreement of two-thirds of the states or two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress would be the only way amendments could be proposed. Realizing that this would be an insufficient if not impossible way to create the Bill of Rights, James Madison decided to draft the amendments himself by submitting them to Congress.

In 1791, the first ten amendments to the Constitution were accepted and called the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights generally states the rights of the people, of those the First Amendment is often

On a wider spectrum it has been established that the freedom of speech assured by the constitution is not an absolute right. Depending on the medium through which information is delivered, various degrees of the freedom to express one's self is protected. The newly developing Internet has not yet found its own nitch as it right now is blending in with several forms of communication.

The free speech clause of the first amendment was clearly written in order to protect the right of people to express their views in order to keep the government honest and fair. However this amendment does little good when it does not extend to the minority who do not support the current political doctrine. By the police stepping in to silence a citizen's freedom of speech, especially when he is discussing the flaws of the government is a major blow against the first amendment. In order to keep government fair to all people instead of a single elite class freedom of speech must be fully supported.

The Young Progressives were a derivative of the leftist Progressive Party, which had separated from the Democrats during the 1948 presidential campaign. The Progressive's argued for such liberal moves as a repeal of the draft, and end to race-based discrimination. They also supported closer ties with the Soviet Union, and greater freedom of political action for the Communist party in the United State.

The first victim of the Sedition act was Matthew Lyon, a republican representative from Vermont. Prior to the Sedition act Lyon had built up an angry rivalry with Connecticut Federalist Roger Griswold. When Lyon was up for reelection in the fall following the Sedition act he blatantly directed his campaign against the Federalist Party and their outrageous conduct. Despite the fact that his arguments were met and countered almost word for word by the Federalists, Lyon was indicted, convicted, and sentenced (by a Federalist Judge) to four months in jail and a 1,000-dollar fine. Fortunately the people of Vermont were bright enough to recognize this outrage, and reelected him while serving his jail sentence.

A background of fear helped keep the public silent and perhaps somewhat approving to the loss of some personal freedoms, as nobody wanted to be accused sedition. In May of 1778, President Adams declared a day of prayer and fasting. Many people thought that protestors were going to use that day to rise up in insurrection, while some even feared an attack on President Adams! Supportive citizens of Philadelphia came out by the hundreds to protect him Adams. Federalists saw this as a demonstration of support for the government, while those who spoke against the Federalists were accused of violating the Sedition act. Edward Livingston, in opposing the act said, "If we are ready to violate the Constitution, will the people submit to our unauthorized acts? Sir, they ought not to submit; they would deserve the chains that our measures are forging for them, if they did not resist."

" The first consideration that this review suggests is the omission of a BILL OF RIGHTS ascertaining and fundamentally establishing those unalienable and personal rights of men, without the full, free, and secure enjoyment of which there can be no liberty, and over which it is not necessary for a good government to have the control. The principal of which are the rights of conscience, personal liberty by the clear and unequivocal establishment of the writ of habea

Some common words found in the essay are:
Supreme Court, BILL RIGHTS, Bill Rights, Amendment Congress, Shelton Tucker, African Americans, United Blum, Justice Harlan, Revolution Constitution, Decency Act, freedom speech, bill rights, sedition act, free speech, supreme court, web sites, justice department appealed, personal freedoms, justice department, department appealed, medium information delivered, president adams, abridging freedom speech, depending medium information, sedition act blatantly,
Approximate Word count = 2346
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)