Bill of Rights for Dummies

When adopting the United States constitution in 1787, the convention of various states demands certain amendments to avoid misuse of political powers. However, many citizens were of the opinion that the amendments were not necessary. There were two groups, the Federalists, who were against the bill of rights and the Anti-Federalists, who wanted the bill of rights. Following these issues and after being motivated by many leading Americans, the First United States Congress proposed twelve amendments on September 25, 1789, of which the last ten were ratified simultaneously by three-fourths of the state legislatures.

The first article (unratified) dealt with the number of seats that were to be allotted for each Representatives; whereas, the second article (ratified in 1992 as the 27th Amendment) dealt with in creasing the salaries and compensations of congressmen. The ratified rights constitute the first ten amendments of the United States Constitution, and are collectively known as the Bill of Rights. Since these amendments are concerned with the freedoms and rights of citizens, they are referred to as the Bill of Rights. Let's discuss in brief about the Bill of Rights of the United States.

First Amendment:

• Freedom to exercise any religion (Congress should not enact any law in favor of establishing a religion)
• Freedom of speech
• Freedom of press
• Right to assemble peacefully
• Right to petition for redress of grievances

Second Amendment:

• Right to keep and bear arms

Third Amendment:

• Prohibition of quartering of troops (without the consent of the owner)

Fourth Amendment:

• Prohibition of search (papers, persons, houses) and seizure without reason

Fifth Amendment:

• Prohibition of arrest for answering any capital or infamous crime
• Protection from double jeopardy
• Prohibition of taking private property for public use

Sixth Amendment:

• Protection of rights of the accused
• Permission for trial by jury
• Right to counsel

Seventh Amendment:

• Compulsory civil trail by jury (according to common law)

Eight Amendment:

• Protection from excessive bail
• Prohibition of imposing excessive fines
• Prohibition of cruel and unusual punishments

Ninth Amendment:

• Preservation of certain rights that are not enumerated in the Bill of Rights, but are retained by the people

Tenth Amendment:

• Reservation of certain powers to the states and/or people that are not delegated to the national government by the US constitution

These amendments, thus, outlined on how the new US government should be created and/or operated. Among ten amendments of the Bill of rights, the First Amendment is considered to be the most important one, as it guarantees many rights to the US citizens. To be precise, the Bill of Rights were enacted in order to grant individual liberties and to protect people from the state and national governments. Overall, the importance of the Bill of Rights is for safeguarding the US citizens.

The Bill of Rights were based on the Massachusetts Bay Colony’s Body of Liberties, that were enacted in 1641. Though the Bill of Rights came into effect only on 15 December, 1791, James Madison, the fourth President of United States, introduced them on June 8, 1789 to the First United States Congress. For his priceless contribution, James Madison, also one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, is honored as the "Father of the Constitution". The other leading proponents of the Bill of Rights are Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton.