You’ve Got Rights

First… Jot down your thoughts to these two questions…

What does “human rights” mean to you?

What human rights do you think ALL humans have or should have?

Human Rights Every person is entitled to certain rights—simply by the

fact that they are a human being. They are “rights” because they are things you are

allowed to be, to do, or to have. These rights are there for your protection against

people who might want to harm or hurt you. They are also there to help us get along with each other

and live in peace.

Basically, human rights are rights that all humans are entitled to regardless of who they are or where they live.

Human Rights In 1948, The United Nations (U.N.) created

a list of 30 rights that all humans should have. The United Nations came into being in 1945, shortly

after the end of World War II. It was started by the five major powers that won the war: Britain, China, France, the Soviet Union and the United States.

Its purpose is to bring peace to the world and avoid future world wars. Today 192 countries are members of the United Nations.

This booklet explains each of your rights as written in The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

First, in small groups, look through this pamphlet. Read and Discuss each right with your group.

Once you get your handout… Spend a few minutes on your own and decide

which rights are most important to you.   o Yours may not be all the same as others.   o Which rights are most important to you?   

o Highlight your TOP 5 on the list on your handout.

Go back to your note sheet and answer the three questions about the right that you think is most important…1. Which is most important?2. Put it in your own words3. Give 3 reasons why

Think back to our discussion about Rights and Responsibilities…o Who is the source (who guarantees these rights?)o Knowing these rights, what is your responsibility as a

global citizen?

Advanced Classes Possible Discussion Question: Now, discuss your Top 5 with your group.Then, answer the following:

o Are there any rights that are not listed that you think should be? What should they be?  Right them on the back of your paper.

o Are there rights in this list that SHOULD NOT be listed?

Bill of Rights

Hundreds of years before this Universal Declaration of Human Rights was created, our Founding Fathers created a list of 10 rights to which all Americans were entitled. There was nothing written in the U.S.

Constitution that guaranteed that the new government would give the people the freedoms and rights they wanted. So, they added it to the end and called it the Bill of Rights.

First Amendment

FIVE RIGHTS IN ONE!!! WHOO HOOO!!!Freedom of Religion, Freedom of

Speech, Freedom of the Press, Freedom of

Assembly, Right to Petition

(highlight these words)

First Amendment The government cannot support

any religion or prevent citizens from worshipping as they please;

citizens and the media can express their opinion and the government cannot censor them;

people have a right to gather peaceably;

and people can complain to the government.

There are exceptions to these rights…

Exceptions?

“The government may restrict the use of loudspeakers in residential neighborhoods at night, limit all demonstrations that block traffic, or ban all picketing of people’s homes.” Source: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/208044/First-Amendment/296554/Permissible-restrictions-on-expression

Second Amendment

Right to Bear Arms (highlight the red words)

People have the right to own weapons.

Third Amendment

Quartering Troops (Highlight) Citizens cannot be

forced to let soldiers stay in their homes.

Fourth Amendment Unreasonable Searches and

Seizures, Right to Privacy, Search Warrants

Police officers cannot come in your home and search or seize (take) your things without your

permission or a warrant. A judge must have a

“probable cause” (a good reason) to issue a warrant to officers and the warrant must describe the place to be searched and the items or persons to be taken.

There are exceptions to this amendment.

Fourth Amendment

http://www.trussvilletribune.com/2014/07/25/police-bust-gaming-operation-in-trussville/

Exceptions?

Officers can also search and seize objects on a person if the officer has placed the person under arrest. 

An officers can enter a residence or building without a warrant to assist in an emergency.

If you voluntarily give the officer permission, the search does not violate the Fourth Amendment. The consent must be given voluntarily, which means the giver must give it unequivocally, specifically, and intelligently. 

Fifth Amendment

The Fifth amendment gives you multiple rights as well… Rights of the Accused: Due Process, Right to Remain Silent

If you are accused of a crime, law enforcement must respect your rights and follow a certain procedure (this is called Due Process).o Due Process= People have the right to fair and reasonable

laws. Officials have to follow rules when enforcing laws and to treat all people in the same way.

o You must be told what you are being accused ofo There must be enough evidence to send to trial a person

accused of a serious crime.

Fifth AmendmentRights of the Accused, Due Process, Right to Remain Silent

A person cannot be put on trial more than once for the same crime (double jeopardy).

You don’t have to testify against yourself- meaning you have the right to remain silent. (You have the right to “plead the fifth”)

Sixth AmendmentRight to a Speedy and Fair Trial, Right to Face Accusers, Right to a Lawyer

An accused person will not be held in jail for a long period of time before their trial begins.

An accused person will also get a public trial before a fair jury.

An accused person has a right to face their accusers.

If an accused person cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided to defend them.

Miranda Rights

Seventh Amendment Civil Suits A CIVIL trial differs from a criminal trial, but you

are still guaranteed all of your rights. o A civil trial is when someone sues someone else. o A criminal trial is when the gov’t convicts someone of a

crime.

A jury may be provided if one person sues another person and the case involves more than $20.

Eighth Amendment No Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Bail* will not be set unusually high as to make it impossible for someone to pay.

No cruel or unusual punishment will be used against an accused or a convicted person.

*money given as surety that a person released from custody will return at an appointed time.

Ninth Amendment People’s Rights

Citizens have rights other than those written in the Constitution and they cannot be taken away.

Like What? • Some people say this

extends our 4th amendment right to privacy.

• Others say it implies the rights listed in the Declaration of Independence like: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

Tenth Amendment States’ Rights

Those powers not given to the federal government are given to the states.

Like What?o Drivers licenseo School & Educationo Voting lawso Gun laws

BOR Rap 3 Minute TEDed Review http://

ed.ted.com/lessons/a-3-minute-guide-to-the-bill-of-rights-belinda-stutzman

Smart Rap www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlt6R1KD4E0

But, there’s more… The Bill of Rights are only the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. Today, there are a total of 27 amendments (additions to the constitution

11th (February 7, 1795) - This amendment set limits on when a state can be sued. In particular it gave immunity to states from law suits from out-of-state citizens and foreigners not living within the state borders.

12th (June 15, 1804) - Revised the presidential election procedures.

13th (December 6, 1865) - This amendment abolished slavery and involuntary servitude.

14th (July 9, 1868) - Defined what it means to be a US citizen. It prohibits states from reducing the privileges of citizens and ensures each citizen the 'right to due process and the equal protection of the law'.

15th (February 3, 1870) - Gave all men the right to vote regardless of race or color or whether they had been slaves.

16th (February 3, 1913) - Gave the federal government the power to collect income tax.

17th (April 8, 1913) - Established that senators would be directly elected.

18th (January 16, 1919) - Prohibition of alcohol making alcoholic drinks illegal. (It would later be repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment)

19th (August 18, 1920) - The 19th amendment gave women the right to vote. It's also called women's suffrage.

20th (January 23, 1933) - Gave details on the terms of office for Congress and the President.

21st (December 5, 1933) - This amendment repealed the Eighteenth Amendment.

22nd (February 27, 1951) - Limited the president to a maximum of two terms or 10 years.

23rd (March 29, 1961) - Provided that Washington, DC be allowed representatives in the Electoral College. This way the citizens of Washington DC would have a vote for the president even though they are not officially part of a state.

24th (January 23, 1964) - Said that people don't have to pay a tax, called a poll tax, in order to vote.

25th (February 10, 1967) - This amendment defined the presidential succession if something should happen to the president. The first in line is the Vice-President.

26th (July 1, 1971) - Set the national voting age at 18.

27th (May 5 or 7, 1992) - States that Congressional salary changes can not take effect until the beginning of the next session of Congress

Additions (amendments)

As our country grew, certain groups realized that they had been denied the basic right to vote, so many of these amendments guarantee more people the right to vote…

VOTE?A Brief History of

America’s Voting Rights

So you think you

can

The African American Vote The 15th Amendment was

passed in 1870, five years after the end of the Civil War.

The Amendment states, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied … on account of race, color or previous condition of servitude.”

The African American Vote

Former slaves could not be turned away from the polls (voting places) due to the color of their skin or the fact that they had been slaves.

We will see that this rule wasn’t always followed…

So you think you can VOTE?

The year is 1915. I am a single African American man living in Chicago, Illinois. YES YOU

CAN!

Can I vote?

Women gained voting rights after a long hard fight. Wyoming gave women the vote in 1869, but it took the work of

Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and many others to get the job

done!

The Women’s Right to Vote

The Women’s Right to Vote

Women won the right to vote in August of 1920!

The 19th Amendment said, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied … on

account of sex.”

So you think you can VOTE?

I am a woman living in New York City in the year 1924. I am 25, married and have two children.

Can I vote?

YES YOU CAN!

Voting is a Civil Right!

Even after the Civil War, many people in the South did not want African Americans to have the same rights as white Americans. This included the right to vote or hold office.

Some states and counties passed laws that made voting almost

impossible!

Barriers to the African American Vote

Limited opportunities to register to vote

Arrest and beatings by police Threats of violence toward

voter’s family and home Personal information shared with

groups like the KKK and employers

Unfair tests at the polls

The Poll Tax required voters to pay for the ability to vote.

Most Southern African Americans were poor sharecroppers that were heavily in debt to landowners. $1.5

01932

= $23.00

Today

Other tests asked voters to guess the number of bubbles in a bar of soap!

This poll test asks voters to correctly guess the number of cotton balls in a jar before they are allowed to vote.

??

?

The literacy test was one type of poll test that was given in some locations. Voters were tested on their reading skills.

Like with the other tests, white voters always passed while African American voters usually failed.

Alabama Louisiana

Voting Requirements in the South

Many African Americans in these states lacked a quality education, and the tests were meant to exclude blacks

from the voting process.

1) Read a section of the Constitution out loud.

2) Tell what the section says in your own words.

3) Write out another section of the Constitution.

4) Answer eight questions on the Constitution.

Voters who could not prove a 5th grade education had to:

1) Complete a 30 question test

2) Finish the test in 10 minutes!

Alabama

Literacy Test

Examples of Literacy Tests

So you think you can VOTE?

I am a 22 year old African American man living in the deep South in 1948. I work in the cotton fields and cannot read or write.It’s not likely that you’d

get to vote.

Can I vote?

The Civil Rights MovementOver time, more and more

people demanded civil rights for all Americans.

The marches, speeches, sit-ins, freedom rides and activities all added up to what we know as the Civil Rights Movement.

Voting Laws Change

Can you name two people in this

image?

Dr. Martin Luther King,

Jr.

President Lyndon B. Johnson

The 24th Amendment was added to the Constitution in 1964.

It banned the use of poll taxes in elections.

The Voting Rights Act was signed by President Johnson in 1965.

Voting Laws Change

This law: • protected the right

to vote for all citizens • forced the states to obey the Constitution • reinforced the 15th Amendment.

Changing the Voting Age

In the 1960s and 1970s thousands of young men were drafted to fight in the Vietnam War. Many were too young to vote.

The 26th Amendment was passed in 1971.

Supporters of this amendment chanted, “Old enough to fight, old enough to vote!”

Changing the Voting Age

It says, “The right of citizens of the United States, who

are 18 years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied… on account of age.”

So you think you can VOTE?

I just graduated from high school in Maryland, Class of 1972! I am 18 years old and just got drafted to fight in the war in Vietnam.

Can I vote?

YES YOU CAN!

NYTimes Voting Rights Act

Voting Rights Video- TED ed http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-fight-for-the-right-to-vote-in-the-united-states-nicki-beaman-griffin

Voting Rights Act- NY Times video    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4XtZ-tIzIA

Review Time!

Vote Here!

Forcing people to pay for the right to vote was called a _________?

LITERACY TEST

OR

POLL TAX

Poll taxes were used to keep poor African Americans from voting.

The Voting Rights Act reinforced the 15th Amendment.

TRUEOR

FALSE

After the 15th Amendment, many states and counties still prevented African Americans from voting. The Voting Rights Act was written to remove these barriers.

Which war led to the passage of the 26th Amendment?

WORLD WAR TWO

OR

THE VIETNAM WAR

Many of the soldiers fighting in the Vietnam War were too young to vote. The 26th Amendment moved the voting age from 21 to 18.

Susan B. Anthony worked to give Slaves the right to vote.

TRUEOR

FALSE

Susan B. Anthony fought for the right of women to vote!

BOR Scenarios for Quiz

ADV- Compare and Contrast

Let’s Compare and Contrast the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with the United State’s Bill of Rights.

With a partner, look at both sets of rights. Make a list of what they have in common.

ADV- Compare and Contrast

Get together in a group of 5-6, compare your lists.

Using chart paper, create a Venn Diagram that Compares and contrasts Human Rights to BOR.  

Which of the human rights are included in the BOR? (include BOR for dummies) Use notes.

Which ones are not included but should be in the BOR?

Which rights are included that you don’t believe should be stated?