TILE 5: YOUR BASIC RIGHTS
Since the founding of America and the adoption of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights has protected the basic rights and freedoms of Americans in our democracy. America’s founders created this list of rights to protect us from abuse by our own government. The core principles in the Bill of Rights come from their own experiences with tyrannical leaders and oppressive governments, and their deep desire to build a better society where basic rights are protected. The amendments to the Constitution that guarantee voting rights come from years of struggle to expand these rights to people who were denied them in the past, to form a “more perfect union”, a strong democracy that lives up to the best ideals of our founders with more integrity.
Any government that tries to do away with these rights is un-American and unconstitutional. They only work if they apply to everyone equally, no matter what party they belong to, how they vote, or what their religion, race, or gender is. Over the past 250 years of American history, our nation has tried, however imperfectly, to protect the basic rights of MORE people rather than FEWER to be true to the principles of equality and justice that we were founded on. Donald Trump’s administration is now trying to reverse that vision for all Americans to participate in democracy.
This is important for all of us, because even if right now you personally are not the one suffering the loss of due process, voting rights, peaceful assembly, or freedom of speech, you could be next! Basic rights don’t work if they’re only for the people we disagree with or are annoyed with. To protect every person, these basic principles have to apply to everyone equally.
Here are some of the ways that Donald Trump and his administration are destroying, undermining, or taking away YOUR BASIC RIGHTS AS AN AMERICAN:
<<These could be separate pop-up tiles or be listed below:>>
YOUR RIGHT TO VOTE: (15th, 19th, and 26th Amendments)
The Fifteenth Amendment states that “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 race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”
The Nineteenth Amendment states that “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.”
The Twenty-Sixth Amendment states that “the right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.”
https://www.splcenter.org/resources/guides/trump-executive-action-voting-faq/
https://apnews.com/article/voting-elections-trump-executive-order-4e9edb53f47e61e241a43ceef8164022
YOUR RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS: (5th and 14th Amendments)
Due process means that the government has to follow the law. When a person is suspected of a crime, the government has to follow the rules to prosecute them, such as a trial by jury where evidence is presented.
The Fifth Amendment in the Bill of Rights states that “no person shall… be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”.
The Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution states that “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, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
PERSON not CITIZEN
ICE – no due process
YOUR RIGHT TO HABEAS CORPUS: (Article I, Section 9)
The privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/habeas-corpus-explained
YOUR RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH: (1st AMENDMENT)
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/amendments/amendment-i
YOUR RIGHT TO PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY: (1st AMENDMENT)
YOUR RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF THE PRESS: (1st AMENDMENT)
YOUR CIVIL RIGHTS: (XXth AMENDMENT)
13, 14, 15 Amendments
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DOGE databases |
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Surveillance, e.g. Palantir |