POS Government Chapter 4

What are civil liberties?

Constitutional and legal protections of individuals against government actions.

Where are most American civil liberties found?

In the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution.

When was the Bill of Rights ratified?

1791.

Why did Americans strongly support the Bill of Rights?

They remembered abuses of civil liberties under British rule.

What are some examples of British abuses mentioned in the chapter?

Jailing newspaper editors, arresting people without cause, and forcing confessions.

Are civil liberties absolute?

No. Rights often have to be balanced against safety, public order, national security, and other rights.

Who is the final interpreter of the meaning and scope of civil liberties?

The U.S. Supreme Court.

What does the 1st Amendment protect?

Religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition.

What does the 2nd Amendment protect?

The right to keep and bear arms.

What does the 3rd Amendment protect against?

Forced quartering of soldiers in private homes.

What does the 4th Amendment protect against?

Unreasonable searches and seizures.

What is usually required for a search warrant?

Probable cause.

What is probable cause?

A reasonable basis for believing a crime occurred or evidence will be found.

What does the 5th Amendment protect?

Grand jury rights, double jeopardy, self-incrimination, due process, and compensation for eminent domain.

What is double jeopardy?

Being tried twice for the same offense.

What is self-incrimination?

Being forced to testify against yourself.

What does due process mean?

Government must follow fair legal procedures before taking life, liberty, or property.

What does the 6th Amendment protect?

The right to a speedy public trial, impartial jury, counsel, and confrontation of witnesses.

What does the 7th Amendment protect?

Jury trials in certain civil cases.

What does the 8th Amendment prohibit?

Excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishment.

What does the 9th Amendment say?

People have rights beyond those specifically listed in the Constitution.

What does the 10th Amendment say?

Powers not delegated to the federal government are reserved to the states or the people.

Originally, whom did the Bill of Rights restrict?

The national government, not the states.

What did Barron v. Baltimore (1833) decide?

The Bill of Rights applied only to the national government.

Which amendment eventually helped apply the Bill of Rights to the states?

The 14th Amendment.

What does the 14th Amendment Due Process Clause say?

States cannot deprive a person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

What did Gitlow v. New York (1925) decide?

States must respect certain First Amendment freedoms through the 14th Amendment.

What is the incorporation doctrine?

The legal process of applying most Bill of Rights protections to state and local governments.

Which amendment is the basis of incorporation?

The 14th Amendment.

Did incorporation happen all at once?

No. The Supreme Court gradually applied most Bill of Rights protections to the states.

When did much incorporation occur?

Especially during the 1960s.

Does every Bill of Rights provision apply to the states?

No. Most do, but some provisions have not been specifically incorporated.

What are the two religion clauses of the 1st Amendment?

The Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause.

What does the Establishment Clause prohibit?

Government establishment or sponsorship of religion.

What does the Free Exercise Clause protect?

The right to practice or not practice religion.

Can the United States establish an official national religion?

No.

What did Thomas Jefferson mean by a “wall of separation”?

Government and religion should remain separate.

Why can the Establishment Clause and Free Exercise Clause conflict?

Government may try to accommodate religious practice without appearing to promote religion.

What did Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) address?

Government aid to church-related schools.

What is the first part of the Lemon test?

The law must have a secular, nonreligious purpose.

What is the second part of the Lemon test?

Its primary effect must neither advance nor inhibit religion.

What is the third part of the Lemon test?

It must not create excessive government entanglement with religion.

What is an easy way to remember the Lemon test?

Purpose, effect, entanglement.

How did the Supreme Court’s approach to aid for religious schools change after Lemon?

The Court gradually loosened some restrictions on aid to religious schools.

What did Agostini v. Felton allow?

Public school teachers could provide remedial instruction inside religious schools.

What did Zelman v. Simmons-Harris (2002) decide?

A school voucher program could allow families to use vouchers at religious schools.

Can religious student groups use public school facilities?

Yes, if comparable nonreligious student groups are allowed to use them.

What did the Equal Access Act protect?

The right of student religious groups to use public high school facilities if other groups can.

Can public schools allow outside religious instructors to teach religion during the school day?

Not as school-sponsored instruction inside public school buildings.

Can students be released from school to receive religious instruction elsewhere?

Yes.

What did Engel v. Vitale (1962) decide?

School-sponsored prayer violates the Establishment Clause.

Why did Engel v. Vitale rule against the New York prayer?

Government should not compose or sponsor official prayers.

Did allowing students to opt out make the prayer constitutional in Engel?

No.

Can students pray privately in public schools?

Yes.

Can public school officials sponsor or encourage prayer?

No.

What did School District of Abington Township v. Schempp (1963) decide?

Public schools cannot require prayer or Bible readings.

Can school-sponsored prayer at graduation be constitutional?

The chapter says the Supreme Court has ruled it unconstitutional.

Can student-led prayer at public school football games be school-sponsored?

The chapter says such school-sponsored prayer is unconstitutional.

Can students voluntarily pray after a game?

Yes.

Can public schools require creation science to be taught alongside evolution?

No, when the requirement promotes religion.

Why was Louisiana’s creation-science law unconstitutional?

It violated the Establishment Clause.

What is intelligent design?

The idea that life is too complex to result only from natural selection and must have an intelligent cause.

Why can requiring intelligent design in public schools be unconstitutional?

Courts have viewed it as government promotion of religion.

Can religious displays on public property ever be constitutional?

Yes, depending on context and whether the government appears to endorse religion.

What is the Court’s general approach toward religion?

Government should accommodate religion but remain neutral and not endorse religious beliefs.

Does the Free Exercise Clause protect religious beliefs?

Yes. People may believe whatever they want.

Does the Free Exercise Clause protect every religious action?

No. Some religious practices may be regulated.

Why can religious practices sometimes be limited?

Religious conduct may conflict with valid laws or important government interests.

What example does the chapter give involving Muhammad Ali?

He refused military service during Vietnam because of his religious beliefs.

What eventually happened to Muhammad Ali’s draft conviction?

The Supreme Court overturned it in 1971.

Can Amish parents remove children from school after eighth grade?

Yes, according to the Supreme Court ruling discussed in the chapter.

Can parents send children to accredited religious schools?

Yes.

Can students be forced to salute the flag if it violates their religion?

No.

What is a conscientious objector?

A person who refuses military service because of sincere religious beliefs.

What does Title VII require regarding religion in the workplace?

Employers must reasonably accommodate religious observance unless it creates undue hardship.

What did the Supreme Court say an “undue hardship” means in 2023?

A substantial burden in the overall context of the employer’s business.

Can employers make a religious practice like wearing a head scarf a negative factor in hiring?

No.

What is the Religious Freedom Restoration Act?

A federal law giving stronger protection to religious exercise against federal government interference.

What standard does RFRA use?

The government must show a compelling interest and narrow tailoring.

What did the Court rule about religious schools and some scholarship programs in Espinoza and Carson?

States may not exclude religious schools simply because they are religious.

Is freedom of expression absolute?

No.

What is freedom of expression?

The right to say or publish what one believes.

What kinds of expression can receive First Amendment protection?

Spoken, written, symbolic, and some commercial expression.

What kinds of expression may receive little or no First Amendment protection?

Libel, obscenity, fraud, and incitement to violence.

What is prior restraint?

Government action that prevents material from being published before publication.

What did Near v. Minnesota (1931) establish?

Government generally cannot use prior restraint to shut down publication.

Can someone still be punished after publication?

Yes, if the publication violates a valid law or another person’s rights.

Can public schools regulate student expression more than adult expression?

Yes, in some school-related situations.

What did the Court rule in 2021 about a student’s off-campus vulgar social media post?

The school violated the First Amendment by punishing the student for it.

What issue did Schenck v. United States (1919) involve?

Speech opposing the military draft during World War I.

What did the Supreme Court decide in Schenck v. United States?

It upheld Schenck’s conviction.

What test came from Schenck v. United States?

The clear and present danger test.

What is the clear and present danger idea?

Government may limit speech that creates a clear and present danger of serious harm.

Why is Schenck important?

It shows that free speech may be limited when it threatens public safety or order.

What did Dennis v. United States involve?

Communist Party leaders accused of advocating violent overthrow of the government.

How did the Court rule in Dennis v. United States?

It upheld their convictions because national security outweighed their speech claims.

How did later free-speech cases change the rule about advocating violence?

Abstract advocacy may be protected, but inciting imminent lawless action may be punished.

What is symbolic speech?

Actions that communicate an opinion without spoken or written words.

What are examples of symbolic speech?

Wearing an armband, burning a flag, or marching in a parade.

What did Texas v. Johnson (1989) decide?

Burning the American flag can be protected symbolic speech.