Florida Civic Literacy Test Study Guide

Principles of American Democracy

• The supreme law of the land is the Constitution.

• The Constitution serves several primary functions:

  • It sets up the government.

  • It defines the government.

  • It protects basic rights of Americans.

• The concept of self-government is established in the first three words of the Constitution: "We the people".

• An amendment is defined as:

  • A change to the Constitution.

  • An addition to the Constitution.

• The first ten amendments to the Constitution are known as The Bill of Rights.

• Rights or freedoms protected by the First Amendment include:

  • Speech

  • Religion

  • Assembly

  • Press

  • Petition the government

• The total number of amendments to the Constitution is $27$.

• The Declaration of Independence served to:

  • Announce our independence from Great Britain.

  • Declare our independence from Great Britain.

  • State that the United States is free from Great Britain.

• Two rights specified in the Declaration of Independence are:

  • Life

  • Liberty

  • Pursuit of happiness

• Freedom of religion is defined as: "You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion."

• The economic system in the United States is characterized as a:

  • Capitalist economy

  • Market economy

• The "rule of law" entails:

  • Everyone must follow the law.

  • Leaders must obey the law.

  • Government must obey the law.

  • No one is above the law.

System of Government

• Branches or parts of the government include:

  • Congress (legislative)

  • President (executive)

  • The courts (judicial)

• The mechanism that stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful is:

  • Checks and balances

  • Separation of powers

• The President is the individual in charge of the executive branch.

• Federal laws are created by:

  • Congress

  • Senate and House (of Representatives)

  • (U.S. or national) legislature

• The two parts of the U.S. Congress are the Senate and House of Representatives.

• There are $100$ U.S. Senators.

• U.S. Senators are elected for a term of $6$ years.

• One of the current U.S. Senators for the state of Florida is Marco Rubio.

• The House of Representatives consists of $435$ voting members.

• U.S. Representatives are elected for a term of $2$ years.

• The U.S. Representative listed for the specific area is Donna Shalala.

• A U.S. Senator represents all people of the state.

• Some states have more Representatives than other states because of:

  • The state's population.

  • They have more people.

  • Some states have more people.

• The President is elected for a term of $4$ years.

• Citizens vote for President in the month of November.

• The name of the President of the United States at the time of the document is Donald J Trump.

• The name of the Vice President of the United States at the time of the document is Mike Pence.

• If the President can no longer serve, the Vice President becomes President.

• If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, the Speaker of the House becomes President.

• The President acts as the Commander in Chief of the military.

• The President signs bills to become laws and also vetoes bills.

• The President's Cabinet advises the President.

• Cabinet-level positions include:

  • Secretary of Agriculture

  • Secretary of Commerce

  • Secretary of Defense

  • Secretary of Education

  • Secretary of Energy

  • Secretary of Health and Human Services

  • Secretary of Homeland Security

  • Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

  • Secretary of the Interior

  • Secretary of Labor

  • Secretary of State

  • Secretary of Transportation

  • Secretary of the Treasury

  • Secretary of Veterans Affairs

  • Attorney General

  • Vice President

• The judicial branch performs the following functions:

  • Reviews laws

  • Explains laws

  • Resolves disputes (disagreements)

  • Decides if a law goes against the Constitution

• The Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States.

• There are $9$ justices on the Supreme Court.

• The Chief Justice of the United States currently is John Roberts (John G. Roberts, Jr.).

• Powers belonging to the federal government under the Constitution include:

  • To print money

  • To declare war

  • To create an army

  • To make treaties

• Powers belonging to the states under the Constitution include:

  • Providing schooling and education

  • Providing protection (police)

  • Providing safety (fire departments)

  • Giving driver's licenses

  • Approving zoning and land use

• The current Governor of Florida is Ron DeSantis.

• The capital of Florida is Tallahassee.

• The two major political parties in the United States are the Democratic and Republican parties.

• The political party of the current President is the Republican Party.

• The current Speaker of the House of Representatives is Nancy Pelosi.

Rights and Responsibilities

• There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote:

  • Citizens $18$ and older can vote.

  • You don't have to pay a poll tax to vote.

  • Any citizen can vote (women and men can vote).

  • A male citizen of any race can vote.

• Responsibilities exclusive to United States citizens include:

  • Serve on a jury

  • Vote in a federal election

• Rights exclusive to United States citizens include:

  • Vote in a federal election

  • Run for federal office

• Rights of everyone living in the United States include:

  • Freedom of expression

  • Freedom of speech

  • Freedom of assembly

  • Freedom to petition the government

  • Freedom of religion

  • The right to bear arms

• Loyalty is shown to the United States and the flag when saying the Pledge of Allegiance.

• Promises made when becoming a United States citizen include:

  • Give up loyalty to other countries

  • Defend the Constitution and laws of the United States

  • Obey the laws of the United States

  • Serve in the U.S. military (if needed)

  • Serve (do important work for) the nation

  • Be loyal to the United States

• Citizens must be $18$ years and older to vote for President.

• Ways Americans can participate in their democracy include:

  • Vote

  • Join a political party

  • Help with a campaign

  • Join a community group

  • Join a civic group

  • Run for office

  • Write to a newspaper

• The last day to send in federal income tax forms is April $15$.

• All men must register for the Selective Service at age $18$, or between the ages of $18$ and $26$.

American History: Colonial Period, Independence, and the 1800s

• Reasons colonists came to America include:

  • Freedom

  • Political liberty

  • Religious freedom

  • Economic opportunity

  • Practice their religion

  • Escape persecution

• Native Americans (American Indians) lived in America before the Europeans arrived.

• Africans (people from Africa) were taken to America and sold as slaves.

• Colonists fought the British because:

  • High taxes (taxation without representation)

  • The British army stayed in their houses (boarding, quartering)

  • They didn't have self-government

• Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.

• The Declaration of Independence was adopted on July $4$, $1776$.

• The $13$ original states were:

  • New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia.

• At the Constitutional Convention, the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.

• The Constitution was written in $1787$.

• The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution; writers included James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and Publius.

• Benjamin Franklin is famous for being a U.S. diplomat, the oldest member of the Constitutional Convention, the first Postmaster General of the United States, the writer of "Poor Richard's Almanac", and starting the first free libraries.

• George Washington is known as the "Father of Our Country" and was the first President.

• The United States bought the Louisiana Territory from France in $1803$.

• Wars fought by the United States in the $1800$s include:

  • War of $1812$

  • Mexican-American War

  • Civil War

  • Spanish-American War

• The U.S. war between the North and the South is known as the Civil War or the War between the States.

• Problems that led to the Civil War included slavery, economic reasons, and states' rights.

• Abraham Lincoln is known for freeing the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation), saving or preserving the Union, and leading the U.S. during the Civil War.

• The Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in the Confederacy and most Southern states.

• Susan B. Anthony fought for women's rights and civil rights.

Recent American History and Geography

• Wars fought by the United States in the $1900$s include:

  • World War I

  • World War II

  • Korean War

  • Vietnam War

  • (Persian) Gulf War

• Woodrow Wilson was President during World War I.

• Franklin Roosevelt was President during the Great Depression and World War II.

• The United States fought Japan, Germany, and Italy in World War II.

• Eisenhower was a general in World War II before becoming President.

• During the Cold War, the main concern of the United States was Communism.

• The civil rights movement tried to end racial discrimination.

• Martin Luther King, Jr. fought for civil rights and worked for equality for all Americans.

• On September $11$, $2001$, terrorists attacked the United States.

• American Indian tribes in the United States include: Cherokee, Navajo, Sioux, Chippewa, Choctaw, Pueblo, Apache, Iroquois, Creek, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, Seminole, Crow, Teton, Hopi, Inuit, Arawak, Shawnee, Mohegan, and Huron.

• The two longest rivers in the United States are the Missouri River and the Mississippi River.

• The Pacific Ocean is on the West Coast, and the Atlantic Ocean is on the East Coast of the U.S.

• U.S. territories include Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam.

• States that border Canada include: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Alaska.

• States that border Mexico include: California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.

• The capital of the United States is Washington, D.C.

• The Statue of Liberty is located in New York Harbor (Liberty Island).

• The flag has $13$ stripes representing the original colonies and $50$ stars representing the $50$ states.

• The national anthem is "The Star-Spangled Banner".

• Independence Day is celebrated on July $4$.

• National U.S. holidays include: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Landmark Supreme Court Cases

• Brown v. Board of Education ($1954$): Overturned the "Separate but Equal" standard of discrimination in education. The plaintiff's family argued that segregated systems violated the $14$th Amendment.

• Dred Scott v. Sandford: Ruled that slaves were property and could not sue. It was found to violate the $5$th Amendment and contributed to the onset of the Civil War.

• Gibbons v. Ogden: Determined that regulating interstate commerce is a power reserved to the federal government.

• Gideon v. Wainwright: Ruled that state courts are required under the Sixth Amendment to provide counsel in criminal cases for defendants who cannot afford their own attorneys.

• Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier: Ruled that school newspapers can be censored by administrators for "legitimate pedagogical concerns," despite student claims of First Amendment violations.

• Korematsu v. US ($1944$): Upheld the relocation of Japanese Americans during WWII. Korematsu argued it violated the $5$th Amendment. In $1988$, Congress apologized and paid $20,000$ to survivors.

• Mapp v. Ohio: Established the exclusionary rule; evidence seized illegally (violating the $4$th Amendment) cannot be used in court.

• Marbury v. Madison: Established the Supreme Court's power of Judicial Review.

• McCulloch v. Maryland: Ruled that federal law is stronger than state law and that Maryland could not tax the national bank.

• Miranda v. Arizona: Established that criminal suspects must be informed of their right to an attorney and against self-incrimination (violations of the $5$th and $6$th Amendments) before questioning.

• New Jersey v. TLO: Ruled that students may be searched without a warrant if there is "reasonable ground". This case addressed the Fourth Amendment regarding student search and seizure.

• Plessy v. Ferguson: Upheld the constitutionality of Jim Crow laws through the "separate but equal" doctrine, despite arguments that it violated the $13$th and $14$th Amendments.

• Regents of the University of California v. Bakke ($1978$): Ruled that state universities could not admit less qualified individuals solely based on race, as it violated the $14$th Amendment.

• Roe v. Wade ($1973$): Legalized abortion based on a right to privacy guaranteed implicitly by the $1$st, $4$th, $5$th, $9$th, and $14$th Amendments.

• Texas v. Johnson ($1989$): Struck down laws banning flag burning, identifying it as symbolic speech protected by the First Amendment.

• Tinker v. Des Moines: Ruled that students have the right to symbolic speech at school (protected by the $1$st Amendment) as long as it is not disruptive.

• United States v. Nixon: Limited the scope of executive privilege.