Name: __________________________________________________
Evening School of Excellence – Virginia and U.S. Government
Chapter 19: Civil Liberties: First Amendment Freedoms
Section 1: The Unalienable Rights
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A Commitment to Freedom
o The listing of the general rights of the people can be found in the first __________ amendments in the
____________________, also known as the Bill of _______________.
o The _____th and _____th amendments have also added to the Constitution’s guarantees of personal
____________________.
o In general, civil ____________________ are protections against government.
o They are guarantees of the safety of persons, opinions, and property from arbitrary acts of government.
o The term civil _______________ is sometimes reserved for those positive acts of government that seek
to make constitutional guarantees a _______________ for all people.
Limited Government
o Throughout the Constitution, the extent of governmental authority is strictly ____________________.
o The rights that the Constitution guarantees to ____________________ are also limited.
o People in the United States are __________ to do as they please as long as they do not
_______________ upon the rights of others. Rights are ____________________.
o Sometimes, different rights conflict with one another, such as the freedom of the _______________ and
the right to a __________ trial.
o Not all rights are guaranteed to _______________, who are foreign-born residents or non-citizens. For
instance, their right to _______________ is often restricted.
Federalism and Individual Rights
o The Bill of _______________
 The most famous of the Constitution’s guarantees apply only to the ____________________
Government, not the government of the States.
 The Supreme Court held that the Bill of Rights only restricts the National Government in
____________________ v. ____________________, in 1833.
o The Modifying Effect of the 14th Amendment
 The _____th Amendment’s Due _______________ Clause provides that no State can
“_______________ any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law…”.
 However, to include rights under that heading, the Supreme Court had to define the rights on a
case by case basis, called the process of ____________________.
th
The 9 Amendment
o “The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage
others retained by the people.”
o The __________ Amendment states that the American people possess rights that are not set out
explicitly in the Constitution.
o It has been used to _______________ rights as various as the rights of the ____________________ to a
woman’s right to abortion without undue interference by government.
Section 2: Freedom of Religion
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Freedom of Expression
o
Two guarantees of religious freedom:
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_________________________ Clause
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Guards against establishing a ____________________ religion.
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In effect, freedom __________ religion.
Free ____________________ Clause
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Guards against the government ____________________ in the exercise of any religion.
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In effect, freedom __________ religion.
Separation of ____________________ and _______________
o
A wall of separation?
o
Church and government are ____________________ separated from one another.
o
However, the government _______________ churches and religion in a variety of ways, including
__________ exemption.
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Religion and Education
o
The Supreme Court has had to consider many Establishment Clause cases that involve religion and
education.
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Released Time—students can be released during school hours to attend religious
_______________, as long as the classes do not take place in a _______________ facility.
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Prayers and the _______________--the use of ____________________ and the Bible in a
religious way is not allowed in school or at school functions
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Student Religious Groups—are ____________________ to meet in the school on the same basis
as other student organizations
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Evolution—a doctrine cannot be preferred or prohibited according to its relation to a
____________________ theory
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Aid to ____________________ Schools—the Supreme Court uses the Lemon test to determine
what public _______________ of church-related schools is acceptable
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The Lemon Test
o
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The _______________ Test is based on Lemon v. Kurtzman, 1971.
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The purpose of the aid must be _________________________.
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The aid can neither advance nor inhibit religion.
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Aid must not excessively entangle the government with ____________________.
Other Establishment Clause Cases
o
Seasonal Displays
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Lynch v. Donnelly, 1984—allowed the display of a ____________________ scene along with
other nonreligious objects on public land
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County of Allegheny v. ACLU, 1989—prohibited an ____________________ Christian holiday
display
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o
Pittsburgh v. ACLU, 1989—allowed a _______________-faith holiday display
Chaplains
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The Supreme Court ruled in Marsh v. Chamber, 1983 that is was permissible for chaplains to
open daily sessions of _______________ and State legislatures
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The Free Exercise Clause
o
Limits
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Actions that _______________ social duties or _______________ social order are not covered
under the Free _______________ Clause.
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Examples: Bigamy, Using poisonous snakes during religious ceremonies, Schoolchildren
who have not been vaccinated
o
Free Exercise Upheld
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The Court has found many government actions to be counter to the Free Exercise Clause.
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Examples: Amish children cannot be forced to go to school after grade 8, Ministers are
allowed to hold elective office, Unemployment benefits cannot be denied to someone
who quit their job because of religious beliefs
Section 3: Freedom of Speech and Press
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The Free Exchange of Ideas
o
Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Press guarantees are meant to:
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Protect each person’s right of free ____________________, whether spoken, written, or
communicated in any other way.
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o
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Protect all persons’ right to a complete discussion of public _______________.
Freedom of Speech and Press do not protect:
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_______________, the false and ____________________ use of written words
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_______________, the false and malicious use of _______________ words
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Obscenity
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Words that _______________ others to commit crimes
Seditious Speech
o
____________________ is the crime of attempting to overthrow the government by _______________,
or to disrupt its lawful activities by _______________ acts. Seditious speech is speech that
_______________ such conduct.
o
Congress has enacted __________ major laws to prevent sedition and seditious speech:
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The _______________ and Sedition Acts—made scandalous or false criticism of the government
_______________. Expired before Thomas Jefferson took office in 1801.
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The Sedition Act of __________--made it a crime to encourage ____________________ or
spread anti-government ideas during a time of _______________. Upheld by the Supreme Court
in instances of “clear and present _______________.”
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The _______________ Act of 1940—forbade advocating violent overthrow of the government,
and belonging knowingly to any group that does. The Supreme Court still upholds the
constitutionality of the law, but over time has ____________________ it so that it is difficult to
enforce.
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Obscenity
o
Obscenity laws are enforced under the ____________________ power (Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of
the Constitution.)
o
Obscenity Test laid out in Miller v. California, 1973
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1. The average person finds that the work appeals to “____________________ interests”
judging from contemporary standards.
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The word describes offensive _______________ conduct that is specifically outlawed as
obscene.
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The work lacks serious _______________ of any variety.
Prior Restraint
o
In most cases, the government cannot curb ideas _______________ they are expressed. It can punish
ideas _______________ they are expressed.
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The Supreme Court has held in several cases that the guarantee of a free press does not allow
the government to exercise prior restraint on publication except in grave circumstances. In Near
v. Minnesota, the Court protected the rights of even “miscreant purveyors of scandal.”
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In New York Times v. United States, 1971, the government sought a court order to keep
newspapers from printing “the Pentagon Papers” which had been stolen and leaked to the
press. The Supreme Court found that the government couldn’t show that the papers
endangered national security enough to justify prior restraint of publication.
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The Media
o
The Relationship between the Freedom of _______________ and Press Amendments and the Media:
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Confidentiality: Since the Supreme Court found that the Constitution does not allow members of
the news media to keep their sources ____________________ in a court of law, 30 states have
passed _______________ laws to give reporters some protection against having to reveal their
sources.
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Motion Pictures: In Mutual Film Corporation v. Ohio, 1915, the Supreme Court held that motion
pictures were a ____________________, not a form of expression, and so were not protected
under the freedom of expression guarantees. The Court ____________________ this decision in
Burstyn v. Wilson, 1952.
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Both Radio and Television Media are subject to more government regulation than any other
forms of expression because they are transmitted by “_______________ airwaves.”
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Symbolic Speech
o
Symbolic speech is expression by _______________.
o
Picketing, the patrolling of a business site by workers on _______________, is a prevalent form of
symbolic speech.
o
Supreme Court rulings show that the blanket of symbolic speech covers only so much. It does not cover
destroying _______________ cards (United States v. O’Brien, 1968) but it does encompass __________
burning (Texas v. Johnson, 1989, and United States v. Eichman, 1990).
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Commercial Speech
o
Commercial speech is for ____________________ purposes, usually ____________________.
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For many years, it was believed that the _____st and _____th amendment guarantees did not
protect advertising.
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In a handful of decisions in the 1970s, the Court held that advertising was protected, but not
without ____________________.
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Exceptions include: barring false and misleading advertisement, advertising _______________
goods or services, and the promotion of ____________________ products on the radio or
television.
Section 4: Freedom of Assembly and Petition
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The Constitution’s Guarantees
o
The Constitution guarantees “…the right of the people ____________________ to assemble, and to
petition the Government for a _______________ of grievances.”
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The right to _______________, or gather with one another to express views.
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The right to bring views to the attention of public ____________________.
Time-Place-Manner Regulations
o
The government can make and enforce _______________ regarding the time, place, and manner of
assemblies.
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An example of such a rule is that _______________ areas near schools and courthouses are
restricted.
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The government’s rules must be content _______________. They can place restrictions of the
basis of the time, place and manner of the _______________, but not on what the assembly is
trying to __________.
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Public Property
o
Restrictions on the right to demonstrate:
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Cox v. New Hampshire, 1941: the Supreme Court _______________ a State law requiring a
_______________ to hold a parade on a public street.
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Gregory v. Chicago, 1969: so long as demonstrators act ____________________, they cannot be
held accountable for disturbances that arise because of their demonstration.
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Madsen v. Women’s Health Services, Inc., 1994, and Hill v. Colorado, 2000: the Supreme Court
approved laws creating _______________ zones around abortion clinics and people going in and
out of them.
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Private Property
o
The rights of assembly and petition do not give people a right to ____________________ on private
property.
o
States can interpret their constitutions to require _______________ of private property, such as
shopping centers, to allow people to petition on their property.
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Freedom of Association
o
The guarantees of freedom of assembly and petition include a right of ____________________--the
right to associate with others to promote _______________.
o
The freedom of association also means that a State cannot force an organization to _______________
members when that association would contradict what the organization believes in.