a few years ago, the montana legislature mandated that schools need to bring back the teaching of civics in our schools. to help this along, the american legion decided to sponsor a state-wide essay contest for junior high school students.
in 2009, my 8th grade son's essay was unanimously selected by american legion post #48 as the best in the town of chinook; it was subsequently forwarded to the state headquarters in helena, where it was won third place among applicants from all over the state. from the local post, billy received a plaque and a scholarship of 20$; from the state headquarters, he received a plaque and a 100$ scholarship.
The First Amendment and the Rights Protected by It
There are twenty-seven amendments and seven articles in the Constitution. Of all of these, the First Amendment is the most important. It states that we have five basic rights that no one, not even the government can take away. These rights are freedom of religion, freedom of speech and expression, freedom of the press, freedom to assembly, and the right to petition the government. Of all the twenty-seven amendments there are a lot of rights protected that are not in many other countries, these five are among the most important.
In our country, you can criticize the government without being punished. We do this mainly through our use of our freedom of the press. If you did that in a lot of other countries, you could be arrested or even killed. One of the main ways to criticize the government is through political cartoons. This is how just one of our rights from the first amendment is practiced; keep reading to find the rest.
The second right is the freedom of assembly. An example of this is our right to have a parade or hang out with your friends after school; in a country like China or Cuba, this is allowed because the government fears the people will revolt if they get together like that.
The third and probably the most important right is our freedom of religion. The Constitution states that the government cannot establish a religion; it also states that the government cannot prohibit the free practice of religion; in the Middle East, if you change your religion you could and probably would be killed.
A fourth right protected by the First Amendment is the right of freedom of speech and expression. This means that you can say almost anything you want and not get in trouble. This right is also for what clothes you wear, what music you like or what television and movies you want to watch. In Afghanistan, they banned all music for a period of time.
The fifth and last of the rights recognized by the First Amendment us the right to petition the government; in a lot of other countries, you can’t do that. This may not seem all that important to you now, but what if you want your senators to know something. How do you contact them? That is why this right is in the First Amendment.
We must remember that there are limits to all of these rights; for instance, we cannot tell lies or print lies about another person. Also, we cannot give away military secrets. Further, freedom of religion does not give us the right to offer up human sacrifices to the moon god or something like that.
It would be hard to be free without the Constitution, so we guard it with everything we have. In conclusion, the rights protected by the First Amendment, the Second Amendment and all the others are America’s most prized possessions, and will always be treasured.
in 2009, my 8th grade son's essay was unanimously selected by american legion post #48 as the best in the town of chinook; it was subsequently forwarded to the state headquarters in helena, where it was won third place among applicants from all over the state. from the local post, billy received a plaque and a scholarship of 20$; from the state headquarters, he received a plaque and a 100$ scholarship.
The First Amendment and the Rights Protected by It
There are twenty-seven amendments and seven articles in the Constitution. Of all of these, the First Amendment is the most important. It states that we have five basic rights that no one, not even the government can take away. These rights are freedom of religion, freedom of speech and expression, freedom of the press, freedom to assembly, and the right to petition the government. Of all the twenty-seven amendments there are a lot of rights protected that are not in many other countries, these five are among the most important.
In our country, you can criticize the government without being punished. We do this mainly through our use of our freedom of the press. If you did that in a lot of other countries, you could be arrested or even killed. One of the main ways to criticize the government is through political cartoons. This is how just one of our rights from the first amendment is practiced; keep reading to find the rest.
The second right is the freedom of assembly. An example of this is our right to have a parade or hang out with your friends after school; in a country like China or Cuba, this is allowed because the government fears the people will revolt if they get together like that.
The third and probably the most important right is our freedom of religion. The Constitution states that the government cannot establish a religion; it also states that the government cannot prohibit the free practice of religion; in the Middle East, if you change your religion you could and probably would be killed.
A fourth right protected by the First Amendment is the right of freedom of speech and expression. This means that you can say almost anything you want and not get in trouble. This right is also for what clothes you wear, what music you like or what television and movies you want to watch. In Afghanistan, they banned all music for a period of time.
The fifth and last of the rights recognized by the First Amendment us the right to petition the government; in a lot of other countries, you can’t do that. This may not seem all that important to you now, but what if you want your senators to know something. How do you contact them? That is why this right is in the First Amendment.
We must remember that there are limits to all of these rights; for instance, we cannot tell lies or print lies about another person. Also, we cannot give away military secrets. Further, freedom of religion does not give us the right to offer up human sacrifices to the moon god or something like that.
It would be hard to be free without the Constitution, so we guard it with everything we have. In conclusion, the rights protected by the First Amendment, the Second Amendment and all the others are America’s most prized possessions, and will always be treasured.
