Rights of Citizens
Political rights allow people to participate freely in government. People can protect their civil rights through political rights. These rights are defined in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights at the federal level. They are defined at the state level in state constitutions. Examples of political rights include: • voting • serving on a jury • holding political office • attending a protest • petitioning the government through action and/or speech • supporting a social or political issue • expressing an idea in speech and the press • joining a political party • equal access to public services Economic rights are financial choices and privileges that individuals may select without government interference. These rights enable people to make use of civil and political rights. Economic rights include the right to: • own property • change employment • operate a business • join a labor union • access polling places • meet basic wants and needs • multiple economic opportunities • not being required to pay fees and taxes based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation
People have many different rights. These include unalienable, civil, political, and economic rights. Rights have different functions. Unalienable rights , also called natural rights, are rights that people are born with and cannot be taken away. The Declaration of Independence defines these rights as the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Civil rights protect people from the actions of government, organizations, or other people. The United States government, organizations, and other people cannot prohibit the rights of citizens to: • vote • a fair trial by jury • government services • due process of the law (legal actions or proceedings that must be followed)
• serve in the military • serve in public office • equality through the law • assemble or petition the government
• freedom of speech • freedom of religion
• freedom of the press
Legislation that Protects the Rights of Citizens
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
Throughout the country’s history, the federal government has passed many laws and constitutional amendments to extend, strengthen, and protect the rights of citizens.
Missouri Governor Frederick Gardner signs the resolution ratifying the 19th constitutional amendment.
Amendment or Legislation
Year Passed Purpose
13th
1865
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, withoutdue process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
Amendment
14th
1868
Amendment
15th
1869
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by
Amendment
any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”
19th
1919
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” This act enforced the 15th Amendment to the Constitution and outlawed voting practices that discriminated against citizens on the basis of race.
How do each of these acts or amendments protect the rights of citizens?
Amendment
Voting Rights
1965
Act
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