First Amendment In America

Introduction

The First Amendment to the American Constitution passed laws to deal with the religious issues rising in the United States of America. This amendment specifies that Congress in the United States of America could not make any constitutional framework to protect religious activities in the country. The very nature of the law is to tackle the religious violence happening in the United States of America. This amendment asserts that there shouldn’t be open violence in the country in the name of religion. Expressing anger or violence against any other religious body is strictly prohibited under this constitutional amendment. Thus, by restricting judiciary bodies from making a constitution regarding any ethnic group or religion, no matter to what extent it is right, the government ensures religious stability without affecting the sovereignty of the country. The First Amendment was in favour of the common public, which ensures their civil rights by restricting Congress from protecting any specific religious group to bring equality, justice, freedom of expression and freedom of speech in the United States.

In many cases, religious laws and constitutional references have been taken to create violence in the country. This amendment furthermore explained itself by addressing the most concerned areas of its considerations. The amendment urged Congress not to pass any bill regarding the matter of religion. Freedom of speech and expression of religion and religious practices were protected under a constitutional framework. The amendment further asserts that no one can hold a monopoly in religious matters. Likewise, freedom of the press was considered inviolable. It reduces the power of Congress to favour any ethnic group to support its religious views. The passing of bills to protect any particular group is condemned. Why was this amendment made, and what are the reasons behind it? This question took us back to the history.

Discussion

In response to widespread sentiment that the United States needed a stronger federal government. A convention was held in Philadelphia in 1787, and the Constitution of the United States of America was adopted. Besides, Section Paper VI affirms that no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification. This saved the people who feared that the new government would use constitutional tools to protect a religious group, and it became dominant among other groups. It also rejected the congress’s religious propaganda to preserve a religion under the constitutional farm. After the ratification of thirteen states of America, the bill for the amendment was passed in 1789, and two years later, in 1791, the amendment was enforced and implemented.

The United States of America has been considered as a nation of the biggest ethnic groups which cultivated genocides and mass killings. The history goes back to the KKK era when a particular group was targeted for genocide. Ethnic clashes have always been a major issue in the country. To resolve them through proper legislation and law enforcement, the nation had changed its constitution. To suppress such issues in the country, the government made some amendments to its laws. The laws defined by the government explicitly address the nature of their enforceability as well as the effectiveness of their implementation. After the American Revolutionary War, the Virginia colonial legislature passed a declaration of rights that stated that the freedom of the press is one of the prominent defences of liberty, which can never be read down by anybody but the government. These and other critics were made by different states to enforce the freedom of the press and speech but in the van. Various religious and ethnic group used their dominance to suppress other groups. This creates social imbalance and unrest amongst the people.

In 1787, George Manson, the drafter of Virginia’s Declaration of Rights, affirmed that the civil rights law must be enforced. A strong opposition was faced by the Future Bills of Right Drafter James Madison. James Madison argues that the present civil rights laws are sufficient for public liberty; by enforcing new rules of civil rights, the existing one’s creditability may be risked. Here, Manson’s proposal was defeated by the delegations of states. After being ratified by the thirteen states, the pact was finally drafted into the form of a constitution. The first amendments vowed out the following statements. “The civil rights of anyone cannot be abridged on account of any religious beliefs or worship, nor shall any national religion be established, nor shall any full or equal rights of consciences be in any manner. People should never be deprived of their rights, and the press shall be Inviolable. People shall never be restrained from any peaceful assembling and consulting for their common rights”.

This amendment protected civil rights by refusing Congress to take a side of any religious establishment. This amendment brought up the entire society of the United States of America. In actuality, this constitution or amendment outlines the power and duties of three branches of the federal government and its relationship with the states. By representing the common public and the common interest of the nation, this amendment was made. To protect the rights of the common man to speak and raise his voice. The impacts of the First Amendment in America can be seen in the power of democracy and the freedom of speech, which were given to everyone in this democratic country.

Conclusion

If we try to find the reasons and impacts of the First Amendment of the American Constitution, we come to realize that the whole story revolves around religion. The amendment focused on religious matters. The question in the minds of government officials at that time was whether to construct an effective and equity-based law and order in the country. Whether it be on the moral of religion or independence from the religion. The Constitution’s formation went through many evolutionary stages to form its final statute. The first two presidents of the United States were patrons of religion. George Washington was an Episcopal vestryman, and John Adams described himself as a church-going animal. Washing Ton called religion the source of morality. The third and fourth presidents also had a strong affiliation with religion.

But the problem was not with the religion. Rather, it was with the people who followed it and used religion for their personal means. Congress took the same stance to shelter religious groups under the law. Which was a threat to the other minority groups? Congress wants to legalize some religious acts pertaining to a specific religion that would otherwise snatch the rights of others by restricting them from speaking or putting sanctions on the media. The response to the Congress propaganda comes in the form of First Amendment civil rights protection. This amendment is to secure all civil rights, including freedom of speech, expression of ideas, and raising voice to the government in a peaceful manner. It declares the media and presses inviolable and regards them as the pillar of the state. It also asserts that there should not be restrictions on the press, and no one has the right to snatch the rights of others in any legal or illegal way. The dominance of religious groups over others was rejected, and everyone was made safe under this amendment, which pushed back Congress’s struggle to promote religious supremacy against specific groups. The First Amendment protects the rights of civilians and regulates social justice in society.

References

Lefebure, Leo D. “Religion, Violence, and Public Life in the United States of America.” Pathways for Interreligious Dialogue in the Twenty-First Century. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2016. 213-229.

Levy, Leonard W. The Establishment Clause: Religion and the First Amendment. UNC Press Books, 2017.

Mitchell, Don. “The liberalization of free speech: Or, how to protest in public space is silenced.” Spaces of Contention: Spatialities and Social Movements 47 (2016).

Inglehart, Ronald. The Silent Revolution: Changing values and political styles among Western publics. Princeton University Press, 2015.