The Amendments of America

  " Section 1 . 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, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. Section 2 . Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-on...

       " Section 1 .  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 and place subject to their jurisdiction Section 2 . Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. "     The nature of this amendment, although a breakthrough for the racial inequality for our country of the time, also left a grey area that any person convicted of a crime can be a slave or an involuntary servant. The nature of this allows the government the option of using inmates and criminals of the time as slaves if they thought it was appropriate for the crime. Since the ratification of the 13th Amendment no change has been made to the loophole to the national constitution, however in 2020 a new amendment called the "Modern Abolition Amendment" was proposed to do such things. With our constitution and its amendments being...

      " The Electors shall meet in their respective states and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate;—The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted;—The person having the greatest Number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed; and if no person have such ...

      " The Judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign State."     Amendment 11 solidifies the powers of the Supreme Court during lawsuits against a state from a citizen of a different state.               The video above gives a general explanation about the 11th amendment but also highlights a specific case Chisholm v. Georgia and how the state of Georgia tried to say they had sovereign immunity meaning they couldn't be sued. This amendment made it so that a state couldn't ignore the public and made it so the Federal Courts would balance the state power and Judge the case in Federal Court instead of a State Court.

      " The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."     The 10th amendment states that any power not given the federal government is given to the states and the people.     This video labels the 10th amendment as an instruction amendment as well as a rule of construction written by our fore fathers. It states that any power not given to the federal government is power given to the state and people in an effort to limit the federal government and the power they had over the people.

      " The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."     This amendment solidifies what most people call implied rights like the right to privacy which comes from a combination of the 4th and 9th amendments working together, in an effort to allow citizens to have rights that may not be specifically stated within the constitution.          This video explains what the right to liberty is and how it is the right to physical freedom in public and how the right to liberty can protect the people but also how in some cases their are exceptions.     This video explains the basic right to life which is protected by law which mean the government has to positively protect the people by passing criminal laws and using public services to help and keep people safe.

      " Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."     The 8th amendment prohibits courts and the government from charges extremely high bail or fines on people and the cost has to reflect the crime that has been committed, it also protect the people from having to endure cruel or unusual punishments, preventing the government from injuring people in extremely violent ways like physical or psychological torture. This video goes over what can be considered cruel and unusual punishment like the death penalty and other punishments for crimes as well as the use of charging an extremely high bail or fine for small crime is unconstitutional.

      " In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law."     This amendment gives each person the right to a trial by jury in federal civil cases where the dispute was more then $20 in 1791 -around $650-$700 as of 2025- it also prohibits another jury from being able to reexamine anything the original jury found to be factual.      The video highlights the need for trial by jury since it gives the person being accused of a crime a sense of ease that they are guilty at first glance. A jury is also able to deliberate on certain aspects of cases and decide which charges and accused is guilty of, if any. Having a jury to decide outcome of a case allows for unanimous decision between multiple people.

       " In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence. ."     The 6th amendment give all people the right to a speedy, public trial with an impartial jury as well as the right to have an attorney.     The video above highlights the importance of an attorney and how the case Gideon v. Wainright (1963) and how it effected an accused's defense against the law even if the couldn't financially afford representation.     This video highlights the importance on an impartial jury and how it effected the case Parker v. Gl...

      " No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation."     The 5th amendment is in place to give each person what's called due process and making sure every person is innocent until proven guilty. This amendment also protect people from double jeopardy meaning they cant be tried for the exact same crime twice. Another aspect is the protection against self incrimination commonly referred to as "pleading the 5th".     Th...

      " The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."     The 4th amendment gave people the right to privacy and made it so police and government agents can't walk into a house or private property without a warrant. Also it prohibits officers from searching and detaining people without probable cause.      The video above explains the need of the 4th amendment and how crucial a persons life and property are kept private and away from the government unless the person has committed a crime that is being investigated with the proper warrants.      This video highlight the need for probable cause for an officer to be able to stop a person from continuin...

      " No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law."     This amendment may seem very odd and peculiar at first but for the people of the time when it was ratified in 1791, it was a way to ensure and ease the people about military presence. When it was still the 13 colonies England had soldiers living in citizens houses allowing the government access, invading the privacy of their homes.

       " A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."     The second amendment was to ensure protection against a tyrannical government by allowing states to create and maintain militias as well as giving the people the right to own firearms. The peoples right to bear arms has had many different interpretations when it comes to the phrase "shall not be infringed", some think that just means the right to own should not be hindered while others think that denying any sort of device involving firearms to be an infringement. This video shows the progression of the amendment and how it has differed through the years.

      "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." Amendment I gave the people the freedom of speech, religion, press, and the right to a peaceful protest. The freedom of religion as explained in this video was a big part of moving and building the United States. Our founding fathers ran from England in order to be free of the religious persecution that was happening to the people. This right allows the people to live without fear of being ridiculed or discriminated against due to religion. The Freedom of the press although not a very focal point to many our fore fathers knew that if the press didn't have the freedom to report how and what they wanted, the press would ultimately become controlled directly by the government allowing them to contro...

    Article VII of the Constitution deals with the ratification of the Constitution and the process it took to approve it stating that it only took 9 states at the time to agree to the terms of the Constitution for it to be implemented as the corner stone of the U.S. government. The video below explains the process our founding father went through and fought for to be able to create the Constitution of the United States.

    Article VI of the Constitution recognizes the Constitution, Federal law, and the Treaties made as the "supreme law of the land" as specifically stated by our founding fathers. This article also states that all debts acquired and accrued before the implementation of the Constitution will still be held against the United States. The video below explains the importance of the "supreme law of the land" and how the U.S. is legally required to honor all laws, treaties, and debts.

      Article V of the constitution although quick is an extremely important aspect of our government as it goes over the process of amending the Constitution and how a majority of Congress 2/3 must all agree on the amendment in order for it to pass as well as 3/4 of the states. The video does an amazing job at explaining the difference between a law and an amendment to the Constitution and how difficult it is to add.

     Stepping away from the national government, Article IV of the constitution allows states to have a government separate from our national government and explains the relationship between the two types of government and how each state has to respect the other states laws. The video explains the relationship in better detail and how our national government offers protection to the states and also allows the people of the states to move freely between [the states.

    Article III of the constitution creates and gives power to the last branch of or government. The Judicial Branch is the 3rd branch of U.S. government creating the Supreme Court. This article also gives some powers to congress but only allowing congress to create lowers courts to interpret laws. The video below explains the powers given to the Supreme Court and how the Judicial Branch interacts with other branches, and how each branch is what is considered "Check and Balances" which was put into place by our founding fathers as to not give one section too much power.

    Article II, like the 1st also pertains to our governments construction adding another branch called the Executive branch which creates positions like President and Vie-President. Just like congress this positions have certain requirements, to be the president you must be 35 and a natural born citizen of the U.S. and had to live 14 years in the United States. All of the branches have to work together in order to work effectively. In Article 1 it gives Congress the ability to make laws but the executive branch is where laws are enforced, the Executive Branch also holds the power to make treaties and command our military.  The video below specifies the powers of each role within the executive branch and how these powers have to be carried out. Also it explains the importance of the electoral college as well as the presidential cabinet which provides some checks and balances to the Presidents powers. 

      Article I of the constitution is the longest article written by our founding fathers as a way to construct the Legislative Branch of our government. All of Article 1 pertains to the establishing of Congress, forming 2 groups known as the Senate and the House of Representatives. It also gives Congress certain powers within our government like making laws, regulating commerce, and declaring war. It also puts restrictions in place in order to qualify for these positions, in order to be in the House you need to be at least 25 and a citizen for 7 years. For the Senate you must be 30 years old and be a citizen for 9 years in order to run. The video below gives very good examples of the powers held and given to Congress in Article 1, and how they carry out these powers in order to try and create a better country. It is exemplary at explaining the differences between Senate and House.