Bill of Rights
By the end of the eighteenth century, the majority of Americans had come to believe that government was created by citizens who consent to live under its laws in order to protect their rights of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." They also felt that a written constitution was necessary for such a government. In 1787 a United States Constitution was drafted with a system of checks and balances by the creation of the executive, legislative and federal judicial branches of government. Within the blueprint of the Constitution the division of federal and state powers were defined. It also included explicit provisions for protecting individual rights such as trial by jury in criminal cases, suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, prohibition of bills of attainders and ex post facto laws and the Contract Clause. (Stephens and Scheb 334-337) The United States Constitution was unique but contained only a few apparent individual rights. During this period the Constit!ution was not applicable to everyone. It applied only to white men who were property owners. (Stephens and Scheb 351) The Framers of the Constitution did not consider it necessary to include a specific declara
The Soviet Union Bill of Rights of 1936, Articles 118 through 128, guaranteed its citizens a range of civil and economic rights similar in context to the United States Bill of Rights such as freedom of speech, press, assembly, press, search and seizure, . . . Within these freedoms were provision in Articles 129 through 133 which implied that the basic structure of Soviet's society could not be changed for Stalin's political party retained all the power. The Soviet Union Bill of Rights was a written document of rights, never enacted. To the contrary Stalin ordered Soviet Union citizens to comply with his doctrine, which was the law. Implementation was through terror of being imprisoned or executed. The United States Bill of Rights protects its citizens from such oppression of their individual rights. Our system of government limits federal government from infringement and through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, state governments. Individual right! The Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments were enacted to enjoin discrimination by states against individuals, especially the newly freed slaves. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery and the Fifteenth Amendment prohibited racial discrimination for black men to vote, but the most important amendment to the Constitution other than the Bill or Rights was the Fourteenth Amendment. This amendment guaranteed authorized rights and privileges of citizenship, equality and personal liberty. Although the Fourteenth Amendment's main purpose was to protect the rights of African Americans, it has been the protector against states infringement on individual rights and liberties through its Due Process Clause. (Stephens and Scheb 345) The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment declares "nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, property without due process of law . . . " This clause limits the powers of state government. It became the binding e! lement which was enforced by the doctrine of incorporation. Stephens, Jr., Otis H. and Scheb II, John M. American's Constitutional Law. 2nd ed. Belmont: West/Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1999. In rebuttal to the Federalist's view of the Constitution providing limited government through Russia's Soviet Union Bill of Rights of 1936. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2712
Approximate Pages = 11 (250 words per page double spaced)
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