Our Living Shield: The First Amendment Essay -- essays research papers

Our Living Shield: The First Amendment The authors of the Constitution of the United States created a magnificent list of liberties which were, at the time ascribed, to most people belonging to the United States. The main author, James Madison, transported the previous ideas of f undamental liberties from the great libertarians around the world, such as John Lilburne, John Locke, William Walwyn and John Milton. Madison and other previous libertarians of his time were transposed into seventeen different rights which were to be secured to all those in the United States. These seventeen civil liberties were compressed into ten different groupings which were designated as the "Bill of Rights." In this document lay the First Amendment which stated that the people of the Uni ted States had the "freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government..." The First Amendment was drafted by federalist Madison mainly as a political tactic to abolish anti-federalist resistance to the Constitution. After its passage in December of 1791, the First Amendment remained more idealistic than realistic. The First Amendment remained a set of ideals which were not to be carried out during its first century, then progressed to more realistic terms during its latter half of utilization. During the first century of the First Amendment, the First Amendment was paid a glance by all when it came to actually carrying out...